Presented 

by 

Mary  Hoar 
June  1981 


Digitized  by  the  Internet  Archive 
in  2016  with  funding  from 
Boston  Library  Consortium  Member  Libraries 


https://archive.org/details/ourcountryhouseh01loss_0 


. . » 


r 


V'^ 


1 


THORFIN  and  GUDRIDA  on  the  shore  of  VINELAND. 


« • , 


f 


-ri 


OUR  COUNTRY. 

A 

Household  History 

FOR  ALL  READERS. 


FROM  THE  DISCOVERY  OF  AMERICA  TO  THE 

PRESENT  TIME. 


BY 

BENSON  J.  LOSSING,  LL.D. 

WITH  OVE^  FIVE  HUjIMET)  ILLUSTrRATIOJIS, 

BY 

FELIX  O.  C.  DARLEY, 

AND  TWELVE  FINE  ENGRAVINGS  ON  STEEL. 


VOLUME  ONE. 


NEW  YORK: 

JOHNSON  & MILES. 
1877. 


f 

in 

V,  1 


Entered  according  to  Act  of  Congress,  in  the  year  1877, 
By  JOHNSON  & MILES, 

In  the  Office  of  the  labtarian  of  Congress,  at  Washington. 


Electfotyped  by 

AliG.  “4.  i>81SMlTH  & McDOUGAL. 


Printed  by 

FILMER  & CLASS. 


BOSTON  COLLEGE  LIBRARY 
CHESTNUT  HILL,  MASS. 


TO 

THE  HOUSEHOLDS  OF 

OUR  COUNTRY, 


W?IEREIN  PRIVATE  VIRTUE  SUSTAINS  THE  FABRIC  OF  OUR  FREE 

INSTITUTIONS,  ' 

Cbb  Morh  is  Jlcbicutcb, 


WITH  THE  RESPECT  AND  AFFECTION  OF 


THE  AUTHOR 


* 


• f ■ 


>• 


Til 

rr 

k 


% 


i 


I 


PREFACE 


UR  country,  as  known  to  civilized  men,  is  young  in  years  and  with- 


chroniclers  have  called  it ; its  existence  suspected  by  the  ancients  but 
proven  only  in  the  later  periods  of  history.  Yet  its  people  possess  the 
treasures  of  the  experience  of  ages,  and  the  results  of  the  progress  of  the 
human  race  from  pre-historic  times.  With  these  treasures  they  have  bought 
wisdom  wherewith  to  construct,  with  wonderful  celerity,  the  fabric  of  a 
nation  marvellous  in  its  strength  and  resources  developed  and  undeveloped. 

It  is  only  yesterday  in  the  calendar  of  the  earth’s  existence,  when  the 
fact  was  first  made  known  to  modern  men,  that  our  planet  was  a globe,  and 
that  in  the  waters  between  the  western  coasts  of  Europe  and  Africa  and  the 
eastern  coasts  of  Asia,  there  lay  a vast  continent  teeming  with  life,  wealth 
and  beauty.  For  generations  after  that  discovery,  it  was  wrapped  in  pro- 
found mystery,  the  subject  of  wild  conjecture  and  tales  of  wonder.  Then 
newly-awakened  moral  forces  impelled  brave  and  earnest  men  and  women 
to  venture  across  the  Atlantic  Ocean  and  establish  homes  in  the  virgin  wil- 
derness. So  began  the  heroic  age  of  our  Republic,  in  which  time  were 
planted  the  germs  of  the  great  commonwealths  that  compose  this  nation. 

The  story  of  the  growth  of  the  Republic  since  the  planting  of  those 
germs,  is  deeply  interesting  in  incident  and  rich  in  suggestions.  It  is  full  of 
picturesque  passages  which  give  life  and  color  to  the  less  attractive  details, 
making  the  whole  a fascinating  drama.  I have  endeavored,  in  the  following 
pages,  to  unfold  that  story  in  language  so  plain  and  in  form  so  simple,  that 
whole  households  may  be  interested  and  instructed  by  the  reading  of  it. 
Greater  prominence  than  usual  has  been  given  to  what  may  be  called  the 


out  antiquity  of  Art,  Science,  Literature  or  Government,  measured 
by  the  standards  of  other  continents.  It  is  in  a New  World,  as  the 


V 


VI 


PREFACE. 


romance  of  our  history ; and  the  pencil  of  the  artist  has  been  summoned  to 
the  aid  of  the  pen  of  the  author,  in  presenting  those  picturesque  scenes. 
So  may  be  diffused,  it  is  hoped  (especially  amongst  the  young,  who,  as  read- 
ers only,  prefer  such  literature  in  this  more  attractive  shape  rather  than 
in  the  stately  figures  which  engage  the  stiidcnt),  a knowledge  of  the  principal 
characters  and  events  in  our  history,  and  impress  them  with  a warm  love  for 
our  free  institutions. 

The  History  of  the  United  States  may  properly  be  arranged  in  six  dis- 
tinct periods,  under  the  respective  heads  of  (i)  DISCOVERIES;  (2)  SETTLE- 
MENTS; (3)  Colonies;  (4)  The  War  for  Independence  or  the  Politi- 
cal Revolution;  (5)  The  Nation;  (6)  Tpie  Civil  War,  or  the  Social 
Revolution.  This  work  is,  accordingly,  divided  into  Six  Books,  each  con- 
taining a record  of  events  that  occurred  in  corresponding  periods  of  the  six 
divisions.  So  is  presented,  in  proper  order,  striking  epochs  that  indicate  the 
growth  of  the  nation  in  its  successive  stages,  and  the  unity  of  achievements 
by  which  the  grand  results  that  Americans  now  enjoy  were  reached. 

In  the  First  Book  may  be  found  a sketch  of  the  several  discoveries,  actual 
and  apocryphal,  in  America,  which  bear  direct  relations  to  the  history  of 
the  Republic  from  the  advent  of  the  navigators  of  the  North  in  the  tenth 
and  eleventh  centuries,  until  Hudson  and  Champlain  won  their  deserved 
honors.  It  also  contains  a history  of  the  Indians  found  here. 

In  the  Second  Book  is  told  the  story  of  the  several  unsuccessful  and  suc- 
cessful efforts  to  plant  settlements  along  the  Atlantic  coasts  from  Florida  to 
the  Gulf  of  St.  Lawrence,  and  upon  the  banks  of  the  great  “ River  of 
Canada.” 

In  the  Third  Book  are  narratives  showing  how  the  several  settlements 
crystallized  into  organized  communities  and  became  permanent  colonies — 
the  originals  of  great  States.  The  events  which  mark  the  foundation  of 
these  colonies,  and  of  their  growth  to  flourishing  and  powerful  common- 
wealths when  the  P'rench.and  Indian  war,  at  the  middle  of  the  last  century, 
compelled  them  to  form  a union  for  mutual  protection,  are  carefully 
delineated  in  their  most  picturesque  features.  So  the  colonial  history  of 
each  of  the  old  thirteen  States  is  given  separately,  to  the  period  when  this 
colonial  union,  and  the  political  league  of  1776,  were  formed. 


PREFACE. 


vii 

In  the  Fourth  Book  may  be  found  an  account  of  the  chief  and  most 
stirring  events  of  the  great  struggle  which  resulted  in  the  political  independ- 
ence of  the  United  States,  and  the  establishment  of  a national  government 
in  1789,  by  the  union  of  the  several  States  under  one  supreme  central 
power. 

In  the  Fifth*  Book  may  be  found  an  account  of  the  progress  of  the  new 
nation  during  a period  of  more  than  seventy  years,  until  the  beginning  of 
the  civil  war  in  1861.  In  this  book  the  events  of  the  Indian  wars,  the  war 
of  1812-’ 1 5,  and  the  war  with  Mexico  from  1846  to  1848,  are  delineated. 

In  the  Sixth  Book  may  be  found  the  exciting  and  deeply  impressive 
story  of  the  Civil  War  which  resulted  in  a great  social  revolution  by  the  abo- 
lition of  slave-labor  throughout  the  Republic.  In  it  may  also  be  found  a 
general  review  of  the  progress  of  our  country,  from  the  inception  of  our 
nationality  until  the  end  of  the  first  century  of  its  existence  in  the  year  1876. 

In  the  preparation  of  this  work  I have  availed  myself  of  all  new  revela- 
tions concerning  the  history  of  our  country  made  by  recent  investigations, 
which  have  fallen  under  my  observation ; and  I have  endeavored  to  make  it 
a faithful  picture  of  the  Republic  in  all  its  phases,  without  any  exaggeration 
in  outline  or  coloring.  In  this  labor  I have  been  nobly  seconded  by  Mr. 
Barley,  the  eminent  American  artist,  who  has,  in  every  drawing  illustrative 
of  the  text,  consulted  the  best  authorities  for  portraiture  and  costume,  and 
followed  their  teachings.  His  spirited  sketches  of  a vast  number  of  events 
in  our  history,  are,  therefore,  stamped  with  the  insignia  of  truth,  and  are 
positively  useful,  not  only  as  artistic  embellishments,  but  as  safe  instructors. 
The  spirit  of  these  drawings  has  been  admirably  preserved  by  eminent 
engravers.  To  these  gentlemen,  and  to  the  generous  liberality  of  the  Pub- 
lishers in  bringing  out  the  work  in  a style  of  great  elegance  and  costliness, 
the  reader  is  largely  indebted  for  the  pleasure  and  instruction  which  these 
volumes  may  afford. 

With  these  remarks,  I submit  the  work  to  the  households  of  Our  Country. 

Benson  J.  Tossing. 

The  Ridge,  Dover,  N.  Y. 


CONTENTS 


BOOK  I. 

DISCOVERIES. 


CHAPTER  I. 

The  Extent  and  Character  of  Our  Countr)%  p.  i — The  Form  of  its  Government,  2 — Its  Dis- 
cover}' by  Norwegians,  3 — Icelandic  Navigators,  5— Their  Attempts  to  Found  a Colony  Here,  6 
— Traditions  Respecting  other  Discoveries,  7 — The  North  American  Indians  in  the  Sixteenth 
Century,  9. 


CHAPTER  II. 

Indian  Population  at  the  Beginning  of  the  Sixteenth  Century,  p.  12 — Their  Language,  Relig- 
ion, Government,  Records,  Literature,  Domestic  and  Military  Habits,  and  Their  Physical  and 
Mental  Characteristics,  12 — The  Iroquois  Confederacy,  15 — Their  Civil  and  Military  Govern- 
ment, 16 — The  Five  Nations,  18 — The  Story  of  Hi-a-wat-ha,  19 — Origin  of  the  Confederacy,  21 — 
Geographical  Distribution  of  the  Indians,  22. 


CHAPTER  HI. 

The  Indians  of  the  Gulf  Region,  p.  25 — Their  Religious  Ceremonies  as  Sun-worshippers, 
28  — Their  Domestic  Habits,  Costumes,  Dwellings  and  Productions,  28  — Their  Military 
Defences  and  War-like  Operations,  28— Their  Marriage  and  Funeral  Ceremonies,  29 — The 
Fate  of  the  Indians,  31 — European  Society  in  the  Fifteenth  Century,  32 — Theories  Respecting 
the  Shape  of  the  Earth,  33 — Discoveries  by  the  Portuguese,  34 — Popular  Traditions  Concerning 
the  Atlantic  Ocean,  34 — Christopher  Columbus  : His  Theories  and  Aspirations,  35 — His  Family 
Relations  and  Early  Voyages,  36 — His  Efforts  to  Obtain  Means  for  Making  a Voyage  of  Dis- 
covery, 37 — Conduct  of  the  King  of  Portugal,  37. 


CHAPTER  IV. 

Columbus  at  the  Convent  of  De  Rabida,  p.  38 — Columbus  Kept  in  Suspense,  39 — Asks 
Aid  of  the  Sovereigns  of  Spain,  40 — The  Spanish  Monarchy  at  that  Time,  40 — The  Council  at 
Salamanca,  40— Delays  and  Disappointments,  41 — Queen  Isabella  Resolves  to  Fit  Out  Vessels 
for  Columbus,  43 — He  is  Appointed  Admiral  and  Sails  from  Palos,  44 — The  Voyage  Westward, 
45 — Discovers  an  Island  Supposed  to  be  a Part  of  the  East  Indies,  48 — Lands,  Takes  Posses- 
sion, and  Calls  the  Native  Inhabitants  Indians,  49. 


X 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER  V. 

Columbus  Discovers  Cuba  and  San  Domingo,  p.  51 — Leaves  a Colony  on  San  Domingo,  52 — 
Their  Conduct  there,  52 — Columbus  Returns  to  Spain,  53 — Unrighteous  Ambition  of  Pinzon 
Defeated,  54 — Columbus  Invited  to  the  Court,  55 — His  Brilliant  Reception  at  Barcelona,  55 — 
His  Audience  with  the  Sovereigns,  55 — Columbus  at  the  Feast  given  b)^  Cardinal  Mendoza,  5O 
— He  Makes  Other  Voyages  and  Discovers  South  America,  58 — He  is  Falsely  Accused  and 
Sent  from  San  Domingo  to  Spain  in  Chains,  58 — Indignation  of  Isabella,  59 — Ingratitude  and 
Injustice  of  Ferdinand,  60 — Columbus  Dies  in  Poverty  and  Neglected,  60 — His  Remains,  60 — 
A Monument  to  His  Memor)"  in  Genoa,  61. 


CHAPTER  VI. 

Henry  the  Seventh  of  England,  p.  63 — He  Commissions  the  Cabots  to  Make  Discoveries,  63 
— Voyage  and  Discoveries  of  Sebastian  Cabot,  64 — King  Henry’s  Ambitious  Designs,  66 — Cabot 
in  Spain,  66 — Americus  Vespuccius,  67 — His  Pretended  First  Discovery  of  America,  68 — How,  by 
Fraud,  our  Continent  was  Called  by  His  Name,  68 — The  Pope’s  Gift  of  America  to  the  Spanish 
Monarch,  69 — Voyages  of  Cortereal  to  Labrador  and  their  Results,  70 — Young  Columbus  in 
San  Domingo,  70 — Ponce  De  Leon’s  Search  for  the  Fountain  of  Youth,  and  Discovery  of 
Florida,  71 — Discovery  of  South  Carolina,  74 — Cruel  Treatment  of  Natives  and  their  Revenge, 
74 — Discovery  of  Central  America,  75 — Attempts  to  Colonize  Central  America,  75 — The  Span- 
iards in  Cuba,  78 — Their  Introduction  of  Christianity  to  the  Natives  of  that  Island,  78. 


CHAPTER  VII. 

The  Spaniards  on  the  Isthmus  of  Darien,  p.  79 — Their  Cruel  Treatment  of  the  Natives,  80 — 
Story  of  the  Discovery  of  the  Pacific  Ocean,  by  Vasco  Nunez  De  Balboa,  82 — He  Takes  Posses- 
sion of  it  in  the  Name  of  the  Spanish  Monarchs,  83 — Tidings  of  Peru,  83 — Death  of  Nuiiez,  83 
— Cuba  Conquereil,  83 — Hernando  Cortez,  83 — Story  of  the  Conquest  of  Mexico,  84 — Success 
and  Cruelties  of  the  Spaniards  in  Mexico,  85 — Capture  of  Its  Capital,  87 — Destruction  of  Idols, 
87— Attempted  Conquest  of  Florida  by  Narvaez,  87— Dreadful  Sufferings  of  that  Leader  and 
His  Followers,  89 — Their  Destruction,  90. 


CHAPTER  VIII. 

De  Soto  Commissioned  to  Conquer  and  Govern  Florida,  p.  91 — His  Experience  in  the  Domin- 
ions of  a Creek  Chief,  93 — A Friendly  Indian  Queen  on  the  Savannah  River,  95 — De  Soto’s 
Treachery,  95 — His  Kind  Reception  in  the  Coosa  Country,  96 — De  Soto’s  Perfidy,  97 — His 
March  through  Alabama,  97 — De  Soto  is  outgeneralled  by  the  Emperor  Tuscaloosa,  98 — Ter- 
rible Encounter  with  the  Alabamians  at  their  Capital,  98 — De  Soto  goes  Further  into  the  Inte- 
rior, 100 — Fatal  Encounter  with  the  Barbarians,  loi — De  Soto  Discovers  the  Mississippi  River, 
102 — He  Crosses  that  Stream  and  Marches  toward  the  Rocky  Mountains,  102 — De  Soto  Returns 
to  the  Mississippi  and  Dies,  103 — His  Followers  reach  Mexico,  103 — Death  of  His  Wife,  103. 

CHAPTER  IX. 

Voyage  of  Verazzani,  p.  105 — Kidnaps  an  Indian  Boy,  106 — He  Explores  the  Coasts  from 
North  Carolina  to  Newfoundland,  106 — Cartier  Discovers  the  Gulf  of  St.  Lawrence,  108 — On  a 


CONTENTS. 


XI 


Second  Voyage  He  Discovers  the  River  St.  Lawrence  and  Names  Both,  109 — He  Explores  the 
River  to  the  Site  of  Montreal,  no — Takes  a Daughter  of  a Huron  Chief  to  France,  in — He 
Winters  at  the  Site  of  Quebec,  112 — Cartier  Kidnaps  the  “ King  of  Canada”  and  some  of  His 
Chiefs,  and  takes  them  to  France,  112— English  Explorers,  112— Their  SuflFerings  in  New- 
foundland, 112 — Cartier’s  Third  Voyage  to  the  St.  Lawrence,  113 — Hostilities  of  the  Natives, 
114 — The  Lord  of  Robertville  on  the  St.  Lawrence,  115. 


' CHAPTER  X. 

The  Protestant  Reformation,  p.  116 — The  Huguenots  or  French  Protestants,  117 — Coligni  and 
Catharine  de  Medici,  118 — Permission  Granted  for  a French  Protestant  Settlement  in  America, 
1 19— A Settlement  Planted  on  the  Coast  of  South  Carolina,  120 — The  Colony  Neglected,  121 — 
Helped  by  the  Natives,  122 — A Huguenot  Colony  in  Florida,  123 — Friendship  of  the  Natives, 
124 — They  Build  a Fort  on  the  St.  John’s  River,  124 — Appearance  there  of  a Spanish  Fleet,  125 
— The  Colonists  Warned  concerning  it,  126 — The  Spaniards  Land  at  the  Site  of  St.  Augustine, 
126 — Fruitless  Expedition  against  them,  127. 


CHAPTER  XI. 

Menendez,  p.  128 — His  Landing  on  the  Coast  of  Florida,  129 — The  French  on  the  St.  John’s 
Massacred  by  the  Spaniards,  129 — Complaints  of  the  Outrage  Unheeded  b)'the  French  Monarch, 
131 — The  Chevalier  de  Gourges  Avenges  the  Crime  by  Retaliation,  132 — The  French  Court 
Favors  the  Roman  Catholics,  133 — Wickedness  of  Catharine  de  Medici,  134 — The  Murder  of 
Coligni,  134 — Queen  Elizabeth  Espouses  Coligni’s  Plan  for  Settlement  in  America,  136 — 
Reports  concerning  the  Warmer  Regions  of  America  received  from  Walter  Raleigh,  136 — 
Frobisher’s  Voyage  in  Search  of  a Northwest  Passage  to  India,  and  for  Gold,  137 — His  Dis- 
coveries, 137 — The  Globe  Circumnavigated  by  Drake,  138 — His  Exploits  against  the  Spaniards, 
139- 


chapter  XII. 

Sir  Humphrey  Gilbert’s  Patent,  p.  140— Character  of  Walter  Raleigh,  142 — Illustration  of  His 
Gallantry,  143 — A Favorite  of  Queen  Elizabeth,  143 — Gilbert  at  Newfoundland,  144 — Is  Lost  at 
Sea,  145 — Raleigh  receives  a Charter  from  the  Queen,  145 — Sends  an  Exploring  Expedition  to 
America,  145 — Its  Cheering  Results,  146 — The  Queen  Names  the  Region  Explored  Virginia, 
146 — Raleigh  Sends  a Colony  to  Virginia,  146 — Bad  Leaders  Produce  Great  Disasters,  147 — 
A Colony  of  Working  People  Sent,  150— First  English  Child  Born  in  America,  150 — The 
Colony  Lost,  151 — Raleigh’s  Deeds,  and  His  Sufferings  at  the  Hands  of  a Bad  King,  152 — His 
Death  on  the  Scaffold,  152. 


CHAPTER  XIII. 

Explorations  of  the  New  England  Coasts  by  English  Navigators,  p.  155 — Grand  Scheme  for 
Colonizing  Virginia  Patronized  by  the  British  Monarch,  158 — Charters  Granted,  158 — Attempts 
of  the  French  to  Plant  Settlements  in  America,  160 — Samuel  Champlain  Founds  Quebec  and 
Montreal,  162 — He  Discovers  and  Names  Lake  Champlain,  162 — With  the  Help  of  the  Jesuits 
He  Establishes  the  French  Dominion  in  America,  163 — The  Story  of  the  Voyages  and  Discov- 
eries of  Henry  Hudson,  164 — His  Sad  Fate,  i68. 


CONTENTS. 


xii 


BOOK  II. 

SETTLEMENTS. 


CHAPTER  I. 

t 

England  at  the  Bt  ginning  of  the  Seventeenth  Century,  p.  171 — Henry  the  Eighth  and  the 
Church,  172 — Da\vn  of  the  Age  of  Reason,  172 — Rural  Population  of  England,  173 — Furniture, 
Costume,  Methods  of  Agriculture,  Learning  and  Fine  Arts  in  England,  173 — London  and  Pl)'m- 
outh  Companies,  176 — Settlements  Attempted  in  New  England,  177 — English  Settlers  On  the 
James  River,  178 — Captain  John  Smith,  179 — Settlement  at  Jamestown  181. 


CHAPTER  II. 

Energ}’  and  Wisdom  of  Captain  Smith,  p.  184 — His  Encounter  with  Indians,  185 — Saved 
from  Death  by  Pocahontas,  186 — His  Influence  at  Jamestown,  and  His  Explorations,  188 — 
Demands  of  the  Company,  189 — Smith’s  Rules,  190 — Change  in  the  Government,  190 — Perilous 
Passage  of  a Governor  and  Commissioners,  190 — Valuable  Emigrants,  191 — Pocahontas  Saves 
Jamestown,  193 — The  “Starving  Time,’’  193 — Abandonment  of  and  Return  to  Jamestown,  193 
— Lord  Delaware’s  Administration,  194 — A Better  Social  System,  194 — Pocahontas  Kidnapped, 
195 — Her  Baptism  and  Marriage,  196 — Friendship  of  the  Indians,  197 — The  Staple  of  Virginia, 
198 — Representative  Government  Established,  199. 


CHAPTER  III. 

Explorations  in  New  England,  p.  200 — Kidnapping  Indians,  200 — Religious  Parties  in  Eng- 
land, 201 — Persecutions,  202 — A Theological  Conference,  203 — Bad  Conduct  of  King  James, 
203 — Puritans  in  Holland,  203 — Longings  for  America,  204 — Preparations  for  Emigration,  205 — 
“ Pilgrims”  go  to  America,  205 — Constitution  of  Government  Signed,  206 — Founding  of  Plym- 
outh, 207 — Sufferings  of  the  Emigrants,  207 — First  Marriage  in  Plymouth  Colony,  210. 


CHAPTER  IV. 

Hudson’s  Voyages  and  Discoveries,  p.  212 — Block’s  Explorations,  213 — Charter  for  New 
Netherland  Granted,  215 — Dutch  Traders  on  the  Hudson,  215 — Troubles  with  the  English,  216 
— Dutch  West  India  Company  Chartered,  217 — Preparations  for  Settlement,  218 — A French 
Intruder,  218 — Arrival  of  Walloons  at  Manhattan,  219 — Settlement  on  the  Delaware,  220— 
Political  Organization  of  New  Netherland,  221  — New  Amsterdam  Founded,  221  — Freedom 
there,  222. 


CHAPTER  V. 

The  Plymouth  Company  in  Parliament,  p.  224 — First  Debate  in  Parliament  on  American 
Affairs,  226 — Grants  of  Territory  East  of  Massachusetts,  226 — Sir  William  Alexander’s  Domain, 
227 — Emigration  Plan  of  Gorges  and  Mason,  227 — Settlers  in  New  Hampshire,  227 — Dissolu- 
tion of  the  Plymouth  Company,  2'29 — Gorges  Govrinor-General  of  New  England,  229 — Found- 


CONTENTS. 


Xlll 


ing  of  the  Colony  of  New  Hampshire,  229 — George  Calvert  (Lord  Baltimore)  Seeks  a Charter 
for  Maryland,  230 — His  Son  receives  it,  231 — Its  Character,  231 — Voyage  of  Emigrants  to 
Mar3dand,  233 — First  Settlement  in  Marjdand,  and  Founding  of  its  Capital,  236. 


CHAPTER  VI. 

Claims  of  the  Dutch  in  New  England,  p.  239 — A Dutch  Embassy  to  the  Pilgrims,  240 — The 
Capital  of  the  Pilgrims,  240 — The  Dutch  and  English  in  the  Valley  of  the  Connecticut,  242 — 
First  English  Settlement  there,  243 — The  Dutch  Exasperate  the  Indians,  244— Emigration  of 
Puritans  to  the  Connecticut  Vallejs  244— Conflicting  Claims  to  the  Territory,  246 — Hooker’s 
Emigration,  246 — The  Pequods  Jealous,  247 — War  with  the  Pequods,  248 — Their  Destruction, 
252 


CHAPTER  VII. 

A Settlement  Begun  at  New  Haven,  p.  253 — A Peculiar  Government  Established  there,  254 — 
The  Dutch  and  English  at  Variance  in  the  Connecticut  Vallet',  256 — A Government  Formed  at 
Hartford,  256 — Roger  Williams  in  Massachusetts,  257 — His  Banishment,  258 — Williams  and 
others  Found  Providence,  260 — Rhode  Island  Settled,  263 — Form  of  Government  there,  263 — 
Anne  Hutchinson  and  others  Driven  from  Massachusetts,  263 — Williams  obtains  a Charter  for 
Rhode  Island,  264 — Intolerance  in  Massachusetts,  265 — Reception  of  Williams  on  His  Return 
from  England.  265. 


CHAPTER  VHI. 

Social  Condition  of  Holland  in  the  Seventeenth  Centurj',  p.  266 — Inducements  to  Settle  in 
New  Netherland,  267 — The  Patroons,  their  Privileges  and  Dependents,  267 — A Settlement  in 
Delaware  and  its  Fate,  268 — The  Swedes  on  the  Delaware,  269 — The  Dutch  and  Swedes  at  Vari- 
ance, 270 — The  Swedes  Maintain  their  Position,  271 — New  Jersey  Granted  to  Royal  Favorites, 
272 — Inducements  to  Settle  there,  273 — Governor  Carteret  and  Settlers  at  Elizabethtown,  274 — 
Trouble  with  the  Settlers,  275 — A Republican  Prophet,  276. 


CHAPTER  IX. 

The  “ Friends  ” or  “ Quakers,”  p.  277 — William  Penn  obtains  a Charter  for  Pennsylvania,  278 
— Emigration  to  Pennsylvania,  279 — Penn  Visits  America,  280 — The  Swedes  on  the  Delaware, 
280 — Treaty  with  the  Indians,  280 — Penn  Visits  New  York,  281 — Meets  the  First  Pennsylvania 
Assembly,  281 — Visits  Lord  Baltimore,  282 — Founds  Philadelphia,  282 — Settlers  in  North  Caro- 
lina, 283 — The  Carolinas  Granted  to  Royal  Favorites,  283 — Settlements  on  the  Cape  Fear,  285 — 
Charleston  Founded,  287 — Government  for  the  Carolinas  Framed,  287. 


CHAPTER  X. 

The  English  and  Spaniards,  p.  289 — Slaves  in  South  Carolina,  289 — Prisoners  for  Debt  in 
England,  290 — Revelations  of  the  Prisons,  290 — Measures  for  the  Relief  of  the  Prisoners,  291 — 
Charter  for  Georgia  Granted,  291 — General  Oglethorpe  accompanies  Emigrants  to  the  Savannah 
River,  292 — Joy  of  the  Carolinians,  292 — Friendship  of  the  Indians,  293 — To-mo-chi-chi,  294 — 
A Treaty,  295 — Indians  accompany  Oglethorpe  to  England,  296 — Their  Reception  there,  296 — 
Oglethorpe  Returns  to  Georgia  with  the  Weslej-s,  297 — An  Unwise  Code  for  Georgia,  298. 


XIV 


CONTENTS. 


BOOK  III. 

COLONIES. 


CHAPTER  I. 

The  Virginia  Colonists,  p.  301 — Introduction  of  Slaves  from  Africa,  302 — Young  Women  Sent 
to  Virginia,  303 — Families  and  Schools  Established  there,  304 — Constitution  of  Virginia,  304 — 
Better  Prospects,  305 — Massacre  by  Indians,  307 — Retaliation,  307 — Pestilence.  307 — The  New 
British  Monarch,  308 — An  Unpopular  Governor  Deposed,  310 — Sir  William  Berkeley,  3T0— 
Another  Massacre  by  the  Indians,  311 — Death  of  the  Indian  Emperor,  312 — End  of  the  Indian 
Confederacy,  312 — Berkeley  and  Royalty,  312 — The  “Old  Dominion,”  313. 

CHAPTER  II. 

Berkeley  an  Oppressor,  p. 314 — Republicanism  in  Virginia,  315 — Condition  of  the  Virginians, 
315 — Royal  Favorites  Enriclied,  316 — War  with  the  Indians,  316 — Berkeley’s  Bad  Conduct,  316 — 
Bacon’s  Rebellion,  317 — Berkeley’s  Cruelties,  321 — A Breach  of  Privilege,  322 — A Profligate 
Governor,  322 — Virginians  Impoverished  and  Degraded  by  Misrule,  324 — Political  Troubles  in 
England,  324 — White  Slaves  in  Virginia,  324— Growth  of  Republicanism  there,  325 — The  Rev^o- 
lution  of  1688,  325. 

CHAPTER  .III. 

Executive  Government  of  New  Netherland,  p.  327 — Troubles  with  Indians,  327 — Dutch  India 
Companies,  328 — Admiral  Heyn  and  His  Mother,  329 — A New  Scheme  of  Colonization,  329 — 
Governor  Van  Twiller,  329 — Intercourse  with  Virginia,  331 — De  Vries  in  Virginia  and  at  New 
Amsterdam,  331 — Van  Twiller’s  Foil}’,  332 — Plain  Talk  by  a Parson  and  Sheriflf,  332 — Governor 
Kieft  and  His  Administration,  333 — Covetousness  of  the  Patroons,  334 — Monopoly  Rebuked, 
334 — Farmers  in  New  Netherland,  334 — New  England  Intruders,  335 — Troubles  with  the  In- 
dians, 335 — First  Popular  Assembly,  337 — Massacre  of  Indians  at  Hoboken,  338 — Retaliation, 
339- 

chapter  IV. 

The  Government  of  New  Netherland,  p.  340— Peter  Stuyvesant  appointed  Governor,  340 — 
Reception  of  Stuyvesant,  341 — He  Defines  His  Policy  by  Words  and  Deeds,  341 — A Represen 
tative  Government,  342 — Stuyvesant’s  Vigorous  Administration,  342 — Settles  Disputes  with  Con- 
necticut, 343 — Spirit  of  Freedom  Combated  by  Stuyvesant,  343 — The  Dutch  Sigh  for  the  Free- 
dom of  the  English,  344 — Revolutionary  Proceedings,  344 — Popular  Representatives,  344 — Stuy- 
vesant’s Pluck,  345 — The  Swedes  Subdued,  347 — Troubles  with  the  Indians,  347 — New  Nether- 
land Surrendered  to  the  English,  350 — The  English  Rule,  352 — The  Dutch  Re-Possess  and 
then  Re-Surrender  the  Province,  352. 


CHAPTER  V. 

New  Netherland  Restored  to  the  British,  p.  354 — Andros  and  the  Duke  of  York,  355 — Gov- 
ernor Dongan  and  the  First  General  Assembly  in  New  York,  357 — James  II  and  the  Colonies. 


CONTENTS. 


XV 


357 — A New  Heir  to  the  Throne,  358 — Jacob  Leisler  and  His  Career,  359 — Republicanism  in 
New  York,  360 — Governor  Fletcher  and  His  Discomfiture  at  Hartford,  361 — Indians  Invade 
New  York,  363 — Governor  Bellamont,  363 — Captain  Kidd,  His  Associates  and  Career,  364— 
Governor  Hyde  and  His  Administration,  365 — Other  Governors  of  New  York,  365— Political 
Parties,  366 — Freedom  of  the  Press  Vindicated,  367 — Negro  Plot,  370. 


CHAPTER  VI. 

Governor  Bradford,  p.  371 — The  First  Public  Thanksgiving  in  New  England,  372 — Friendship 
with  the  Indians,  372 — Canonicus  and  His  Challenge,  372 — Weston’s  Colony  and  its  Career,  373 
— Social  Changes,  373 — Enterprise  of  tlie  Pilgrims,  375 — Religious  Matters,  373 — Colony  at 
Cape  Ann,  376 — Endicott  at  Salem,  376 — His  Austerit}',  376 — Massachusetts  Bay  Colony,  377 — 
Governor  Winthrop  and  the  Indians,  380 — Republican  and  Representative  Governments  Estab- 
lished, 380 — Intercourse  with  other  Colonies,  381 — Persecution  in  England  and  Intolerance  in 
Massachusetts,  381 — Preparation  to  Resist  Tyranny,  382. 


CHAPTER  VIL 

Theological  Disputes,  p.  383 — Henry  Vane  made  Governor  of  Massachusetts,  383 — Mrs. 
Hutchinson  and  Her  Fate,  384 — English  Power  respected  by  the  Sav'ages,  384 — The  New  Eng- 
land Confederacy,  385 — First  Coinage  in  America,  386 — The  Puritan  and  His  Ways,  386 — Puri- 
tan Magistrates  Outwitted,  388 — Dealings  with  a Thief,  388 — Apology  for  Intolerance,  388 — Per- 
secution of  Quakers,  389 — Charles  I.  Beheaded,  391 — Cromwell,  392 — Monarchy  Restored,  392 
— Fate  of  the  King’s  Judges,  392 — Goffe  and  Whalley,  393 — Massachusetts  and  Charles  the  II, 
392- 


chapter  VHI. 

King  Philip,  p.  396 — His  Patriotism,  396 — Anger  of  His  People,  397 — He  Declares  War,  397 
— Terrible  Events  of  that  War,  397 — Death  of  Philip  and  Fate  of  His  Son,  402 — Death  of  Charles 
II  and  Accession  of  James  II,  403 — Andros  made  Governor-General,  403 — Revolution  in  Eng- 
land, 404 — Andros  driven  from  Boston,  404 — French  Jesuits  in  America,  405 — The  French  and 
Indians,  405 — A Congress  of  Delegates  in  New  York,  406 — Canada  Invaded,  406 — The  English 
Repulsed,  407 — New  Charter  for  Massachusetts,  407. 


CHAPTER  IX. 

Witchcraft,  p.  409 — The  Sad  Story  of  “ Salem  Witchcraft,”  409 — Superstition  and  Wickedness 
Hand-in-Hand,  411 — Result  of  the  Delusion,  415 — King  William’s  War,  415 — New  England’s 
SuflFerings,  416 — Capture  of  Pemaquid,  416 — The  Baron  de  Castin,  416— French  and  Indians 
make  War  together,  416 — The  Exploit  of  Hannah  Dustin  and  Her  Companions,  417 — Treaty  at 
Ryswick,  419 — The  Pretender,  419 — Queen  Anne,  419 — New  England  more  Tolerant,  420. 


CHAPTER  X. 


Bellamont  Governor  of  Massachusetts,  p.  421 — French  Claims  in  New  England,  421 — Queen 
Anne  and  others  declare  War  against  France,  421 — Struggle  with  the  French  and  Indians,  422 


XVI 


CONTENTS. 


— Influence  of  the  Jesuits,  422 — Death  of  Father  Rale,  423 — Destruction  of  Deerfield,  423 — 
Fate  of  the  Williams  Familj',  424 — The  Village  Bell,  424 — Acadie  Invaded,  425 — Progress  of 
French  Dominion,  426 — Indian  “ Kings”  in  England,  426 — Expedition  Against  Canada,  427 — A 
Long  Peace,  428 — Capture  of  Louisburg,  432 — French  Attempt  to  Re-Take  it,  432 — Treaty  of 
A ix-la-Chapclle,  432. 


CHAPTER  XI. 

The  Government  of  Maryland,  p.  434 — Difficulties  with  Clayborne,  434 — The  Indians  Uneasy, 
435 — A Civil  War,  436 — Toleration  Act,  437 — Disturbances  in  Maryland,  438 — George  Fox  in 
the  Province,  439 — Rule  of  the  Calverts,  440 — Insurrections,  441 — Revolution  in  England,  441 — 
Coode  the  Disturber  of  Maryland,  441 — Annapolis  the  Seat  of  Government,  442 — Lord  Bal- 
timore and  William  Penn,  443 — Tranquillity  in  Maryland,  444 — The  French  and  Indian  War, 
444 


CHAPTER  XII. 

The  Connecticut  Colonies,  p.  445 — An  Absurd  Rumor  about  the  Dutch,  445 — Charter  for  Con- 
necticut obtained,  446 — Tyranny  of  Governor  Andros,  447 — His  Attempt  to  Seize  the  Charter, 
448 — The  Charter  Oak,  450 — Freedom  Enjo}fed  in  Rhode  Island,  451 — Society  there,  451 — New 
Charter  for  Rhode  Island  Obtained,  451 — Its  Duration,  452 — Andros  in  Rhode  Island,  452 — New 
Jersey  Considered,  453 — Its  Social  and  Political  Condition,  453 — The  Province  Divided,  454  — 
The  Quakers  Settle  there,  454 — Andros  in  New  Jersey,  454 — It  becomes  a Royal  Province,  456. 


CHAPTER  XHI. 

William  Penn  in  Penns)dvania,  p.457 — Growth  of  that  Province,  458 — Penn  goes  to  England, 
458 — His  Troubles  there,  459 — He  Returns  to  America,  459— Gives  a Third  and  more  Liberal 
Charter  to  the  Colonists,  460 — His  Death,  and  the  Fate  of  the  Province,  461 — Attempts  to  Force 
the  “Fundamental  Constitutions”  on  the  Carolinas,  461 — Effects  of  Navigation  Laws,  462 — 
Rebellion  in  North  Carolina,  462 — Archdale  made  Governor  of  both  Carolinas,  463 — Social 
Condition  of  North  Carolina,  464 — Settlements  and  Political  Troubles  in  South  Carolina,  464 — 
Growth  of  the  Colony,  464 — The  Huguenots  and  their  History,  465 — Rebellion  in  South  Caro- 
lina, 467 — The  Good  Deeds  of  John  Archdale,  468. 


CHAPTER  XIV. 

The  Carolinas,  p.  469 — Disappearance  of  the  Indians,  469 — Internal  Commotions,  470 — Emi- 
grants from  France,  Switzerland  and  Germany,  470 — An  Indian  Raid  and  Massacre  of  White 
People,  470 — Further  Trouble  with  the  Indians,  471 — South  Carolina,  472 — The  Governor  makes 
War  on  the  Spaniards  in  Florida,  472 — War  with  Indians,  472 — Political  Troubles,  473 — South 
Carolina  Invaded  by  Spaniards  and  Frenchmen,  473 — The  Foe  Expelled,  473 — An  Indian 
League,  474 — Revolution  in  South  Carolina,  476 — The  Two  Colonies  become  Royal  Provinces, 
476 — Georgia,  476 — Religious  Missionaries  there,  477 — Og'ethorpe  and  the  Spaniards  in 
Florida,  477 — Condition  of  the  Georgia  Colony,  479 — Oglethorpe  Invades  Florida,  479 — The 
Spaniards  Invade  Georgia,  480 — Punishment  of  a Deserter,  481 — The  Spaniards  Driven  Out  of 
Georgia,  482 — Oglethorpe  in  England,  482 — Georgia  becomes  a Royal  Province,  483. 


CONTENTS. 


XVll 


CHAPTER  XV. 

Review  of  the  History  of  Discoveries,  p.  484— Settlements  and  Colonization  in  America,  485 
— Planting  the  Seeds  of  French  Dominion  in  America,  486 — The  Labors,  Influence  and  Success 
of  the  Jesuits,  486 — Adventures  Beyond  the  Great  Lakes,  488 — Father  Marquette  and  His  Dis- 
covery of  the  Mississippi  River,  489 — His  Voyage  Upon  that  Stream  and  its  Results,  489 — La 
Salle,  491 — His  Expedition  to  the  Valley  of  the  Mississippi,  491 — He  Voyages  on  that  River  to 
the  Gulf  of  Mexico,  491 — Hennepin  and  the  Upper  Mississippi,  492— La  Salle  Discovers  and 
Names  Louisiana,  493 — His  Attempts  to  Colonize  that  Region,  493 — Discovery  of  Texas,  494 — 
Death  of  La  Salle,  495 — Subsequent  Colonization  by  the  French,  495. 


CHAPTER  XVI. 

Nationalities  of  the  American  Colonists,  p.  496 — Their  Social  Characteristics,  497 — Their 
Industries  and  Commercial  Restrictions,  499 — Their  Educational  Institutions,  501 — Newspapers 
in  the  Colonies,  502 — The  Tendency  of  the  People  to  Local  Self-Government  and  Union,  504 — 
Plans  for  a National  Union,  504— Congresses,  505 — Designs  of  the  Royal  Governors,  506 — A 
Crisis,  506 — Lords  of  Trade  and  Plantations,  506 — Resistance  to  the  Royal  Prerogative,  506 — 
Complaints  by  Royalists  in  America,  506 — Revolution  Prevented  by  the  French  and  Indian 
War,  508. 


CHAPTER  XVII. 

The  Treaty  of  Aix-la-Chapelle,  p.  509 — Efforts  of  the  English  to  Maintain  their  Dominion  in 
America,  509 — The  Ohio  Land  Company,  510 — Events  in  Nova  Scotia,  511 — Sufferings  of  the 
French  Inhabitants  there,  511 — Attempts  to  Enslave  the  Americans  Resisted,  512 — Mahew’s 
Patriotic  Sermons,  513 — Movements  of  the  French  Alarm  the  English,  514 — The  Ohio  Country* 
Explored,  514 — Treaty  with  the  Indian  Tribes,  516 — Hostile  Attitude  of  the  French,  517 — Major 
Washington’s  Embassy  to  the  French  Commander,  517. 


CHAPTER  XVHI. 

Reply  to  Dinwiddle’s  Letter,  p.  522 — Virginia  Prepares  for  War,  523 — A Fort  Commenced  on 
the  Site  of  Pittsburgh,  523 — The  French  Seize  it  and  Name  it  Fort  Du  Quesne,  524 — Washing- 
ton leads  Troops  to  recover  it,  524 — Attacks  and  Defeats  some  French  Troops,  525 — Com- 
pelled to  Surrender  to  the  French  afterward,  526 — Colonial  Convention  at  Albany,  527 — Plan 
of  Union  adopted,  529 — It  is  rejected  bj'  the  British  Ministry  and  Colonial  Assemblies,  529 — 
American  Affairs  in  England,  530 — A Mad  Militaiy  Scheme  Abandoned,  530 — Washington 
leaves  the  Military  Service  in  Disgust,  531 — Braddock  sent  to  America  with  Troops,  532 — 
Plan  of  the  Campaign  for  1755  arranged,  533. 


CHAPTER  XIX. 

The  English  begin  Hostilities  on  the  Sea,  p.  534 — Expulsion  of  the  Acadians  from  Nova 
Scotia,  535 — Hatred  of  the  Acadians  by  British  Officials,  539 — Braddock’s  Pride  and  Folly,  540 — 


CONTENTS. 


xviii 

His  Army  moves  Slowly  toward  Fort  Du  Quesne,  540 — Washington  on  Braddock’s  Staff,  540 — 
Gives  Good  Advice,  541 — A Detachment  of  the  Army  moves  more  Rapidly,  541 — Washington’s 
Wise  Advice  Rejected,  541 — Braddock’s  Army  Defeated  in  Battle  and  Himself  Slain,  542 — 
Retreat  of  the  Army,  542 — Washington  marvellously  Protected,  542 — Shirley’s  Expedition  a 
Failure,  543— Expedition  under  Johnson  at  the  Head  of  Lake  George,  544 — Approach  of  a 
French  Army,  545. 


CHAPTER  XX. 

Militarj'  Events  at  the  Head  of  Lake  George,  p.  546 — Honors  Wrongly  Bestowed,  548 — An 
Opportunity  for  Success  Lost,  548 — Perfidy  of  the  British  Cabinet,  550 — The  Prophecy  of  John 
Adams  and  its  Fulfillment,  551 — Plans  for  the  Campaign  of  1756,  551 — Franklin  in  Military 
Life,  551 — Washington’s  Embassy  to  Boston,  552  — His  Love  Affair  in  New  York,  553 — Lord 
Loudon  Commander-in-Chief,  553 — Abercrombie  at  Albany,  553 — His  Folly  and  Supine- 
ness, 555 — Bradstreet’s  Expedition,  555 — The  French  Capture  Oswego,  556 — Loudon’s  Imbe- 
cility Illustrated,  557 — The  Results  of  the  Campaign  of  1756,  559-LLoudon’s  Ignoble  Vic- 
tories, 559. 


CHAPTER  XXL 

Character  of  Lord  Loudon,  p.  560 — The  Condition  of  England,  561 — Pitt  called  to  the  Cab- 
inet and  His  Dismissal  from  it,  561 — Plan  of  the  Campaign  of  1757,  561 — Expedition  against 
Louisburg  a Failure,  562 — Imbecility  of  Lord  Loudon,  562 — Disgust  of  the  Indians,  563 — Their 
Alliance  with  the  French,  563 — Montcalm  on  Lake  Champlain,  563 — Stark’s  Exploits,  564 — Fort 
William  Henry  Threatened,  565 — Capture  of  Fort  William  Henry  by  the  French,  567 — A Massa- 
cre, 567 — Cowardice  of  General  Webb,  568 — Public  Discontent  in  England,  568 — Pitt  Recalled 
to  the  Cabinet,  568 — His  Policy  and  its  Effects,  569 — Preparations  for  the  Campaign  of  1758, 
569- 


chapter  XXII. 

The  Siege  and  Capture  of  Louisburg,  p.  571 — Expedition  Against  Ticonderoga,  573 — Capture 
of  Fort  Frontenac,  574 — Activity  of  the  French,  574 — Adventures  of  Putnam,  574 — Expedition 
against  Fort  du  Quesne,  576 — Washington’s  Deeds  and  Marriage,  577 — Plan  of  the  Campaign 
of  1759,  578 — Wisdom  of  Pitt,  578 — The  French  in  Canada,  579 — Expedition  against  Crown 
Point,  579 — Expedition  against  Fort  Niagara,  580 — Expedition  against  Quebec,  581 — Arrival 
of  the  English  there,  and  their  Operations,  581. 


CHAPTER  XXIII. 

Wolfe’s  Illness  and  Despondency,  p.  585 — Preparations  to  attack  Quebec,  585 — Battle  and 
Death  of  Wolfe  and  Montcalm,  586 — Surrender  of  Quebec,  588 — Attempt  to  Recapture  it,  588 
— Surrender  of  Montreal  and  all  Canada,  589 — Rogers’  Expedition  to  Detroit,  589 — Interview 
with  Pontiac,  590 — Capture  of  Detroit,  590 — War  with  the  Southern  Indians,  590 — War  Con- 
tinued Abroad,  591 — Treaty  of  Paris,  592 — Discontent  of  the  Indians,  592 — Conspiracy  of  Pon- 
tiac and  its  Effects,  592— Fate  of  Pontiac,  596. 


LIST  OF  FULL-PAGE  ILLUSTRATIONS, 


VOLUME  FIRST. 


Thorfin  and  Gudrida  on  the  Shore  of  Vineland..., Frontispiece 

The  Typical  North  American  Indian Vignette 

The  Landing  of  Columbus To  face  page  50 

Spaniards  Destroying  Mexican  Idols 84 

Frenchmen  Proceeding  to  Attack  the  Spanish  Fort  on  the  St.  Johns.  132 

Landing  of  the  Pilgrims 206 

English  Settlers  in  America 210 

Public  Worship  by  the  Pilgrims  at  Plymouth 240 

Penn’s  Treaty  with  the  Indians 280 

Virginians  Defending  Themselves  against  Indians 316 

Edmund  Cheeseman’s  Wife  before  Governor  Berkeley 322 

Governor  Stuyvesant  destroying  the  Summons  to  Surrender 350 

Puritans  Barricading  their  House  against  Indians 372 

Indians  Plundering  South  Carolina  Plantations 464 

Death  of  Father  Marquette  490 

Major  Washington  on  His  Mission  to  the  French  Commander 518 

Braddock’s  Retreat 542 

Montcalm  Trying  to  Stop  the  Massacre 566 

Conflict  with  the  Indians  on  the  Southwestern  Frontiers 590 

Pontiac  in  Council 592 


BOOK  I. 


DISCOVERIES 


FROM  1002  TO  1609. 


Our  Country. 

CHAPTER  I. 


THE  EXTENT  AND  CHARACTER  OF  OUR  COUNTRY — THE  FORM  OF  ITS  GOVERNMENT — ITS  DISCOV- 
ERY BY  NORWEGIANS — ICELANDIC  NAVIGATORS — THEIR  ATTEMPTS  TO  FOUND  A COLONY 
here — TRADITIONS  RESPECTING  OTHER  DISCOVERIES — THE  NORTH  AMERICAN  INDIANS  IN 
THE  SIXTEENTH  CENTURY. 


Country  occupies  a large  space  on  the 
Map  of  North  America.  It  extends,  in 
a broad  irregular  belt  across  the  Conti- 
nent, from  the  Atlantic  Ocean  on  the 
East  to  the  Pacific  Ocean  on  the  West. 
Its  breadth  is  from  far  down  each  end 
of  the  Gulf  of  Mexico  on  the  South  to 
a line  even  with  the  northern  shores  of 
Lake  Superior,  with  a large  separate  ter- 
ritory in  the  far  northwest,  on  the  con- 
fines of  Asia.  It  comprises  an  area  of 
more  than  three  and  a half  million  square 
miles  ; equal  to  over  twenty-two  million 
farms  of  one  hundred  acres  each, 
were  all  land.  It  con- 
tains almost  forty  mil- 

rj 
/ 


UR 


2 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  I. 


lion  human  beings,  of  whom  more  than  twenty-seven  million  are  natives  of 
the  land.  The  remainder  are  from  almost  every  country  on  the  globe. 
The  latter,  mixing  with  the  native  citizens,  make  us  a strong  people. 

Over  all  this  vast  domain,  favored  with  every  variety  of  climate,  soil  and 
productions,  great  lakes  and  rivers,  and  the  grandest  and  most  beautiful 
natural  scenery,  now  divided  into  many  States  and  several  organized  Ter- 
ritories (the  germs  of  States),  is  felt  the  benign  influence  of  a free  and 
enlightened  government.  It  is  a model  government  which  the  older  nations 
of  the  Earth  are  gradually  copying  as  the  wisest  and  most  sturdy  on  the 
globe.  It  is  a government  by  the  people.  How?  The  people,  the  true 
source  of  all  power  in  government,  choose  a few  of  their  number  to  make 
laws  for  the  whole,  and  others  are  chosen  to  execute  those  laws.  It  is 
therefore  a Representative  Democracy,  or  a government  exercised  by  the 
whole  people  through  their  chosen  representatives.  Its  wisdom  and 
strength  have  been  tested  by  the  most  severe  strains : and  the  superiority 
of  such  a government,  with  an  educated  people  as  its  basis,  has  been  demon- 
strated. 

In  contemplating  the  majesty  of  our  Republic,  the  question  naturally 
arises  in  the  mind.  By  what  processes  has  this  great  and  expanding  nation 
been  planted,  nurtured,  and  strongly  rooted  here,  where  less  than  three  hun- 
dred years  ago  brooded  the  darkness  and  solitude  of  a wilderness  over  the 
whole  continent,  peopled  only  by  savage  hunters  or  half  civilized  barbarians? 
The  answer  to  this  question  will  be  the  marvelous  story  which  I am  about 
to  tell. 


Almost  nine  hundred  years  ago,  a famous  Norwegian  sailor  named 
Eric — called  Eric  the  Red  because  he  had  red  hair  and  florid  complexion — 
settled  in  Iceland,  the  northern  shores  of  which  touch  the  Arctic  Circle. 
Whilst  he  was  on  a voyage  westward  from  that  far  north  country,  he  dis- 
covered Greenland  and  made  it  his  home.  His  son  Lief,  an  ambitious 
young  man,  wished  to  become  a discoverer,  like  his  father.  He  bought  a 
ship — one  of  those  queer  little  Norwegian  vessels  which  were  moved  some- 
times by  sails  and  sometimes  by  oars.  They  were  used  by  those  old  Sea- 
kings,  as  they  were  called,  of  Northern  Europe,  who  spread  terror  by  their 
piracies  over  the  British  Islands  and  the  coasts  of  Western  Europe  from  the 
Rhine  to  the  Straits  of  Gibraltar,  more  than  a thousand  years  ago. 

Lief’s  ship  was  stout  and  tight.  She  had  made  many  voyages  safely. 
He  furnished  her  with  twenty-five  strong  men,  and  invited  his  father  to  go 


Chap.  I. 


DISCOVERIES  BY  NORTHMEN. 


3 


with  him  as  the  commander.  Eric  thought  himself  too  old  for  such  an 
undertaking,  but  was  persuaded  to  go.  Embracing  his  younger  sons  Thor- 
wald  and  Thorstein,  and  his  fiery  daughter  Freydisa,  he  bade  them  farewell, 
mounted  his  horse  and  rode  toward  the  ship.  The  animal  stumbled.  Eric 
thought  it  was  an  omen  of  evil.  “ I do  not  believe  it  is  given  to  me  to  dis- 
cover any  more  lands,  and  here  I will  abide,”  said  the  old  navigator,  and  he 
returned  to  his  house. 

Lief  and  his  companions  sailed  southwesterly.  It  was  in  the  early  sum- 
mer of  the  year  of  our  Lord  1002.  They  were  soon  fighting  the  storms  and 
waves  of  the  North  Atlantic  Ocean  between  Greenland  and  Labrador,  and 
were  sometimes  chilled  by  slow-drifting  icebergs.  At  length  they  saw  land. 
It  was  flat  and  stony  near  the  shore,  with  high  snow-capped  mountains  a 
little  back  from  the  sea.  They  did  not  land,  but  sailing  southward  they  soon 
came  to  another  country,  flat,  and  covered  thickly  with  woods.  It  had  a 
broad  beach  of  white  sand  sloping  gently  to  the  sea.  The  adventurers 
anchored  their  little  ship,  went  on  shore,  and  fed  themselves  with  sweet  ber- 
ries. A few  hours  later  they  sailed  away  southward. 


NORTHMEN  DISCOVERING  TRACES  OF  HUMAN  HABITATION. 


These  bold  seamen  soon  came  in  sight  of  another  land.  It  was  hilly — 
gently  so — and  mostly  covered  with  trees.  Its  northerly  shores  were  shel- 
tered by  an  island.  They  found  there  an  abundance  of  small  fruits,  delicious 
to  the  taste.  No  traces  of  human  beings  were  found  excepting  some  burnt 
wood  and  the  bones  of  large  fishes : and  no  sounds  were  heard  but  the  songs 
of  birds  and  the  chirping  of  squirrels.  Charmed  by  the  soft  climate,  they 


4 


OUR  COUNTRY, 


Book  I. 


sought  a harbor,  and  found  one  at  the  mouth  of  a river  where  the  vessel  was 
swept  by  the  tide  into  a bay.  The  waters  were  filled  with  the  finest 
salmon,  and  wild  deer  abounded  in  the  woods.  The  days  and  nights  were 
nearly  equal  in  length,  at  first.  As  they  remained  all  winter,  they  noticed 
that  when  the  days  were  the  shortest,  the  sun  rose  at  half-past  seven  o’clock 
and  set  at  half-past  four  o’clock. 

A young  German  of  Lief’s  company,  who  was  Eric’s  servant,  was  miss- 
ing one  day.  They  searched  for  him  in  all  directions.  He  had  wandered 
deep  into  the  forest,  and  when  they  found  him  he  was  full  of  joy  because  he 
had  discovered  grapes,  delicious  and  abundant,  such  as  grew  in  his  own 
country.  So  Lief  named  the  country  Vineland.  He  and  his  company  built 
huts  and  wintered  there,  and  in  the  spring  they  returned  to  Greenland. 
Eric  had  lately  died,  and  Lief,  his  eldest  son,  came  into  the  possession  of 
his  estate  and  patriarchal  office.  Eric’s  family  were  Christians,  but  Eric 
died  a pagan. 

Thorwald,  Lief’s  younger  brother,  bought  the  good  ship  and,  with  thirty 
companions,  sailed  for  Vineland.  They  passed  the  winter  there,  occupying 
the  huts  built  by  Lief  and  his  companions,  and  subsisting  as  they  had  done, 
upon  fish.  In  the  spring,  Thorwald  and  a part  of  his  company  explored  the 
neighboring  coasts,  finding  many  sandy  islands,  on  which  there  were  no 
traces  of  wild  beasts  and  few  of  human  beings.  The  summer  was  spent  in 
these  explorations,  and  the  next  was  passed  at  their  old  quarters  in  Vineland. 
Other  explorations  were  made  the  following  summer,  by  the  whole  com- 
pany. In  the  early  autumn  they  entered  a large  inlet.  There  were  high 
lands  on  each  side,  thickly  wooded.  “ Here,”  said  Thorwald,  “ is  a goodly 
place ; here  I will  make  my  abode.”  They  found  there  some  natives — dusky 
people,  of  small  stature,  like  the  Esquimaux  of  Greenland.  They  were  in 
canoes,  and  were  timid  and  harmless.  The  Northmen  caught  them  and 
cruelly  put  them  to  death,  excepting  one  who  escaped  to  the  hills  and 
aroused  his  countrymen.  The  angry  savages  went  silently  in  their  canoes 
and  surprised  Thorwald  and  his  company.  A sharp  fight  ensued.  Arrows 
flew  thick  and  fast.  Thorwald  was  mortally  wounded,  but  his  companions 
escaped  unhurt.  The  savages  fled  to  the  wooded  hills,  and  Thorwald’s  com- 
panions buried  the  body  of  their  chief  on  the  promontory  where  he  in- 
tended to  settle,  with  a cross  at  its  head  and  another  at  its  feet.  The  sur- 
vivors passed  the  winter  in  Vineland,  in  mortal  fear  of  the  enraged  savages, 
and  in  the  spring  they  returned  to  Greenland. 

Thorstein,  Eric’s  third  son,  on  hearing  of  the  death  of  his  brother,  sailed 
for  Vineland,  with  twenty-five  companions  and  his  young  wife,  Gudrida,  a 
beautiful  blonde,  to  whom  he  had  been  married  only  a few  weeks.  Adverse 


Chap.  I. 


A COLONY  FROM  GREENLAND. 


5 


winds  drove  their  little  vessel  on  a desolate  shore  of  Greenland,  far  up  the 
eastern  border  of  Baffin’s  Bay.  There  the  company  suffered  dreadfully,  and 
were  compelled  to  stay  until  spring.  A contagious  disease  broke  out  among 
them,  and  Thorstein  and  a greater  portion  of  his  companions  perished. 
Sadly  the  young  wife  carried  home  the  body  of  her  husband.  So  died  two 
of  the  brave  sons  of  the  valiant  Eric  the  Red,  leaving  their  wayward  sister, 
Freydisa,  alone  with  Lief. 

During  the  next  summer,  a rich  citizen  of  Norway,  young  and  comely, 
arrived  in  Greenland.  His  name 
was  Thorfin.  He  saw  and  loved 
Gudrida,  and  demanded  her  in 
marriage,  of  Lief,  her  patriarchal 
brother-in-law.  They  were  wed- 
ded ; and  the  Norwegian,  accom- 
panied by  his  bride  and  five  other 
young  women  with  their  hus- 
bands and  other  men,  sailed  for 
Vineland,  to  plant  a colony  there. 

They  landed  near  the  spot  where 
Lief  had  passed  the  winter.  Upon 
the  shore,  with  the  little  Nor- 
wegian vessel  anchored  near,  that 
company  of  sturdy  emigrants  pre- 
sented a picturesque  group.  Thor- 
fin, stout,  but  not  very  tall,  was 
clad,  on  that  occasion,  we  may 
imagine,  in  the  costume  of  the 
Norwegian  nobility.  If  so,  over 
his  linen  shirt  he  probably  wore  a 
dark  woolen  tunic  that  descended 
to  the  knees,  with  long  sleeves 
reaching  to  the  wrists.  The  bor- 
ders of  the  skirt,  the  collar,  and  the  ends  of  the  sleeves  were  ornamented 
with  various  colored  cloth  in  a variety  of  devices.  Around  his  waist  was  a 
girdle  or  belt  of  dressed  leather,  ornamented  with  bosses  of  silver  and  gold ; 
and  over  all  was  a short  cloak  of  rich  stuff  made  of  silk  and  woolen,  of  a 
purple  color,  fastened  to  his  shoulder  by  a brooch  of  gold  and  precious 
stones.  His  legs  were  covered  with  white  hose,  bandaged  with  crossed 
fillets  of  gay  colors  from  the  ankle  to  the  knee ; and  on  his  feet  were  black 
buskins,  open  in  front,  and  secured  by  thongs  of  silk,  with  tasseled  ends 


DISCOVERY  OF  GRAPES. 


6 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  I. 


depending  from  the  top  of  the  shoe.  His  long,  dark  wavy  hair  fell  upon  his 
back  and  shoulders,  and  his  flowing  beard  covered  his  bosom. 

The  beautiful  Gudrida,  tall  and  slender  but  muscular  and  lithe,  stood  by 
the  side  of  Thorfin,  whilst  he  audibly  thanked  God  for  their  deliverance  from 
the  perils  of  the  waters ; and  near  them  in  the  shadows  of  great  trees  were 
gathered  the  rest  of  the  company,  silently  uniting  in  the  thanksgiving. 
Gudrida,  we  may  imagine,  was  dressed  in  a manner  befitting  the  rank  of  her 
husband.  She  might  have  worn,  in  the  costume  of  that  day  in  Norway,  a 
white  linen  tunic  that  descended  to  the  instep.  Over  this  a black  gown  of 
silk  reaching  only  to  the  knees,  with  short  flowing  sleeves  that  left  half  the 
arm  bare  below  the  elbow,  and  clasped  by  a golden  bracelet.  A broad  band 
of  gold  embroidery  extended  from  the  waist  to  the  lower  edge  and  around 
the  bottom  of  the  gown,  and  also  around  the  edges  of  the  sleeves ; and  over 
all  hung  gracefully  a gray  woolen  mantle  of  fine  and  light  texture,  fastened 
at  the  throat  with  a brooch  of  gold  and  pearls.  It  hung  in  graceful  folds 
to  her  waist,  in  front,  and  behind  as  low  as  the  gown.  Upon  her  head  was  a 
veil  or  hood  of  silk,  loosely  and  tastefully  arranged  over  the  portion  back  of 
the  ears,  and  falling  in  folds  upon  her  shoulders  and  bosom.  In  front  of 
this  hood  hung  her  beautiful  auburn  hair  in  a rich  profusion  of  curls  and 
ringlets.  On  her  feet  were  black  buskins,  their  open  fronts  laced  with  silken 
cords,  showing  her  white  hose. 

Thorfin  remained  with  the  colony  in  Vineland  about  three  years,  when  he 
and  Gudrida,  with  a part  of  the  company,  sailed  for  Norway,  with  specimens 
of  fruits  and  furs  which  they  had  gathered  in  the  new  country.  After 
making  several  voyages  Thorfin  settled  in  Iceland,  where  he  built  a fine 
mansion,  and  lived  in  a style  unrivalled  by  the  richest  chieftain  in  that 
country.  There  Thorfin  died.  Gudrida,  who  had  become  the  mother  of  a 
son,  whilst  she  was  in  Vineland,  then  went  with  her  boy,  on  a pilgrimage  to 
Rome,  where  she  told  the  stories  of  the  adventurers  in  the  ears  of  Pope  Bene- 
dict. After  her  return,  she  entered  a convent.  Her  son,  whose  name  was 
Snorre,  became,  in  time,  master  of  his  father’s  estates,  and  the  ancestor  of  a 
long  line  of  descendants.  Among  these  was  Albert  Thorwaldsen,  the  great 
Danish  sculptor  of  our  day. 

Those  of  Thorfin’s  colony  who  remained  in  Vineland,  were  joined  by  two 
brothers,  named  Helgi  and  Fiombogi,  with  about  thirty  followers.  They 
were  Icelandic  chieftains,  who  fitted  out  their  expedition  in  Greenland. 
Freydisa,  the  daughter  of  Eric  the  Red,  obtained  a willing  permission  to  go 
with  them,  and  share  in  the  profits  of  the  voyage.  She  was  an  artful, 
intriguing,  deceitful  and  fiery-tempered  woman,  and  Lief  and  his  family 
hoped  she  would  remain  in  Vineland  and  be  decently  buried  there.  She 


Chap.  1. 


NORTHMEN  IN  NEW  ENGLAND. 


7 


was  a fury  and  a firebrand  among  the  colonists.  Where  peace  had  reigned 
she  enthroned  discord.  Quarrels  ensued  which  ended  in  a fight  and  the 
death  of  thirty  persons.  Then  Freydisa,  finding  her  own  life  in  peril, 
returned  to  Greenland,  where  she  died  universally  detested. 

Such  is  the  substance  of  the  accounts  of  these  adventurers,  given  in  the 
chronicles  of  Iceland.  They  reveal  the  fact  that  Norwegians  discovered 
America  almost  five  hundred  years  before  Columbus  sailed  westward  from 
Spain,  in  search  of  India.  The  stony  land  with  the  snow-capped  mountains 
was,  doubtless,  Labrador.  The  flat,  wooded  land,  with  its  white  beach,  must 
have  been  Newfoundland ; and  the  time  given  of  the  rising  and  the  setting 
of  the  sun  at  the  winter  solstice — the  shortest  day  at  about  Christmas  time 
— indicates  some  point  on  the  New  England  coast  between  Boston  harbor 
and  Narragansett  bay,  as  the  spot  where  the  German  lad  discovered  the 
grapes,  and  Lief  named  the  country  Vineland. 

Where  Thorwald  was  buried,  or  where  Thorfin  and  Gudrida  landed  and 
lived,  nobody  knows.  The  best  informed  students  of  the  subject  believe  it 
to  have  been  on  Rhode  Island,  and  that  the  mysterious  stone  tower  at  New- 
port, with  its  massive  cylindrical  walls  resting  on  seven  columns,  whose 
foundation  stones  are  wrought  spheres,  was  built  by  these  Norwegian  colo- 
nists. It  was  there  when  the  English  settlers  came,  and  the  Indians  had  no 
knowledge  of  its  origin.  If  the  Northmen  did  not  build  it,  who  did?  Per- 
haps Gudrida’s  son  was  born  there.  Who  knows? 

All  positive  traces  of  that  colony  in  America,  after  the  departure  of 
Freydisa,  are  lost.  Icelandic  histories  called  Sagas,  and  poems  called  Eddas, 
give  us  glimpses  of  it  for  a few  years,  when  it  fades  into  utter  forgetfulness. 
These  histories  and  poems  tell  us  that  a navigator  named  Gudlief  made  a 
trading  voyage  from  Iceland  to  Ireland  at  about  the  year  of  our  Lord  1030. 
Whilst  he  was  sailing  along  the  western  shores  of  Iceland,  a strong  wind 
blew  his  ship  far  into  the  Atlantic  Ocean  toward  the  southwest.  After 
many  days  he  and  his  crew  saw  land,  anchored  their  ship  in  a safe  harbor, 
and  were  made  prisoners  by  dark-colored  people  who  came  from  the  woods 
in  great  numbers.  Their  captors  took  them  into  the  forest,  where  they  were 
met  by  a white  chieftain  who  spoke  to  them  in  Icelandic,  and  procuring 
their  release,  advised  them  to  depart  immediately,  for  the  dark  people  were 
cruel  to  strangers.  He  refused  to  tell  them  his  name,  but  inquired  after 
Snorre  and  other  well-known  persons  in  Iceland.  Taking  a gold  ring  from 
his  finger,  he  asked  Gudlief  to  present  it  to  Thurida,  Snorre’s  sister.  Gud- 
lief bore  the  jewel  to  the  daughter  of  Gudrida.  It  was  believed  that  the 
white  chief  was  Bjorn,  a famous  Icelandic  bard,  who  had  been  a lover  of 
Gudrida  and  a rival  of  Thorfin,  and  who  left  his  country  in  the  year  998.  If 


8 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  1. 


this  story  be  true,  Bjorn  the  bard  and  Lief  the  navigator,  may  fairly  contend 
in  the  halls  of  Odin  for  the  honor  of  having  been  the  first  of  all  Europeans 
to  discover  America. 

It  is  also  related  that  thirty  years  after  the  event  just  mentioned,  a Saxon 
priest  from  Ireland,  who  had  been  laboring  among  the  pagans  of  Iceland, 
went  to  Vineland,  and  was  murdered  there;  and  that  a bishop  of  Greenland 
undertook  the  same  voyage,  and  was  never  heard  of  afterwards. 


ANCIENT  TOWER  AT  NEWPORT,  RHODE  ISLAND. 


From  that  time,  for  more  than  four  hundred  years,  America  lay  hidden 
from  the  knowledge  of  Europeans,  a wild,  uncultivated  waste.  There  are 
some  traditions,  that  seem  to  have  facts  for  their  substance,  that  tell  us  of 
other  voyages  to  this  Western  world,  during  that  period.  The  most  reason- 
able of  these  stories,  is  that  of  Prince  Madoc  of  Wales,  said  to  have  been 
drawn  from  the  chronicles  of  that  country.  It  is  believed  by  some  historical 
students  that  Madoc,  who  was  a son  of  Owen  Gwynneth,  disgusted  with  the 
domestic  contentions  about  the  rightful  successor  to  his  father,  went  on  a 
voyage  of  discovery,  with  ships  well  manned,  in  the  reign  of  King  Henry 
the  Second,  of  England  ; that  he  went  westward  from  Ireland  and  found  a 
most  fruitful  country,  in  the  year  1170;  that  he  returned  home,  and  with  a 
squadron  of  ten  ships  sailed  for  the  same  lands  with  a colony  of  men,  women 
and  children,  to  settle  there,  and  that  he  was  never  heard  of  afterwards.  It 
has  been  asserted  by  more  than  one  traveller  in  this  country,  that  light- 
colored  Indians  have  been  met  by  them  who  had  many  Welsh  words  in  their 


Chap.  I. 


TRADITIONS  ABOUT  VOYAGES  TO  AMERICA. 


9 


language.  Humboldt  refers  to  this  tradition;  and  Southey,  the  English 
poet,  made  it  the  theme  of  one  of  his  finest  productions.  Until  the  transla- 
tion of  the  Icelandic  Chronicles  revealed  the  story  of  the  Norwegian  voy- 
agers, the  Chronicles  of  Wales  claimed  for  Madoc  the  honor  of  being  the 
discoverer  of  America.  There  are  traditions  of  voyages  to  this  country  in 
the  fourteenth  century,  but  they  are  so  vague  and  improbable  that  I will 
not  weary  you  with  a recital  of  them. 

During  the  centuries  whilst  America  again  lay  hidden  from  Europe, 
great  changes  had  taken  place  among  the  nations  of  the  Eastern  hemi- 
sphere. The  wild  tribes  of  this  portion  of  our  continent  had  evidently  been 
subjects  of  great  changes,  too.  Stronger  bands  of  warriors  and  women  had 
displaced  the  weaker  ones ; and  when  the  Europeans  again  appeared  on  our 
shores,  the  dwarfed  Esquimaux,  whom  the  Northmen  encountered,  had 
been  annihilated  by  a nobler  race  or  driven  toward  the  frozen  regions  of  the 
Arctic  Circle.  There  had  evidently  been  great  migrations  from  one  part  of 
the  continent  to  the  other,  during  which  half-civilized  barbarians  had  been 
expelled  from  fertile  territories  by  savages,  whilst  once  savage  regions  seem 
to  have  been  colonized  by  sun-worshippers  from  Central  and  South  America. 
They  have  left  remains  of  art,  in  buildings  and  pottery,  which  tell  of  a rude 
civilization. 

We  know  that  in  South  America  there  existed  a native  empire  that  com- 
pared favorably  with  any  one  in  the  Eastern  hemisphere  at  that  time.  We 
know  that  between  the  Rio  Grande,  or  Grand  River,  which  divides  our 
country  from  Mexico,  to  the  Isthmus  of  Darien,  there  was  an  Empire  whose 
rulers  and  people  displayed  many  of  the  nobler  virtues  and  some  of  the  arts 
and  sciences  of  civilized  life,  and  whose  laws  evinced  as  profound  respect  for 
the  great  principles  of  morality  as  is  to  be  found  in  the  most  civilized  nation. 
We  know,  too,  that  the  softening  influences  of  that  empire  were  beginning 
to  spread  among  the  ruder  tribes  of  the  North,  when  Cortez  and  his  follow- 
ers— civilized  ruffians  from  Spain — overturned  that  empire.  They  extin- 
guished the  light  that  was  beginning  to  shine  in  the  darker  regions  within 
the  present  domain  of  our  Republic.  With  professed  Christian  zeal  they 
barred  the  way  to  the  advance  of  a civilization  more  practically  Christian 
than  that  which  the  Spanish  conquerors  displayed 

Whence  came  these  dusky  inhabitants  of  our  land?  is  an  unanswered 
and  seemingly  unanswerable  question.  Out  of  isolated  facts — facts  like  the 
following — bold  theories  have  been  formed.  Remains  of  fortifications  like 
those  of  ancient  European  nations  have  been  discovered.  An  idol,  com- 
posed of  clay  and  gypsum,  representing  a man  without  arms,  resembling  one 
found  in  Southern  Russia,  was  dug  up  near  Nashville,  in  Tennessee.  A 


lO 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  1. 


Roman  coin  was  found  in  Missouri ; a Persian  coin  in  Ohio ; a bit  of  silver 
in  the  Genesee  country,  New  York,  with  the  year  of  our  Lord  600  engraved 
on  it  ; split  wood  and  ashes,  thirty  feet  below  the  surface  of  the  earth,  at 
Fredonia,  New  York;  a silver  cup,  finely  gilded,  within  an  ancient  mound 
near  Marietta,  Ohio,  and  in  a tomb  near  Montevideo,  in  South  America,  two 
ancient  swords,  a helmet  and  shield,  with  Greek  inscriptions  upon  them, 
showing  that  they  were  made  in  the  time  of  Alexander  the  Great,  more  than 
three  hundred  years  before  Christ.  The  mysterious  mounds  found  in  various 
parts  of  our  country  have  made  strange  revelations : such  as  weapons  and 
utensils  of  copper  ; catacombs  with  mummies  ; ornaments  of  silver,  brass,  and 
copper;  stones  with  Hebrew  inscriptions;  traces  of  iron  utensils  wholly 
reduced  to  dust ; mirrors  of  isinglass  and  glazed  pottery,  and  other  evidences 
of  the  existence  of  a race  here  far  more  civilized  than  the  tribes  found  by 
Europeans.  And  nearly  all  of  these  modern  Indian  nations  have  traditions 
respecting  their  origin.  Some  of  them  told  of  a partial  or  universal  deluge; 
and  some  said  their  particular  progenitor  came  in  a bark  canoe  after  that 
terrible  event. 

These  facts  have  been  the  texts  of  long  argumentative  discourses.  One 
theorist  tells  you  that  they  came  originally  from  Phonecia  ; another  that 
they  are  Egyptians,  Hindoos  or  Chinese ; while  others  insist  with  great  per- 
tinacity that  they  are  the  descendants  of  the  ten  “ Lost  Tribes  of  Israel,” 
who  made  their  way  from  Asia  to  our  Continent,  over  the  Aleutian  Islands 
or  across  Behring’s  Straits.  Others  dismiss  the  question  with  the  positive 
assertion  that  they  are  the  products  of  this  continent  alone — that  they  orig- 
inated here  as  did  the  plants  and  trees.  “ The  land  you  sleep  on  is  ours,” 
said  a Micmac  chief,  in  Nova  Scotia,  to  Colonel  Cornwallis,  of  the  British 
army,  a century  and  a quarter  ago.  “ We  sprimg  out  of  the  Earth  like 
the  trees,  the  grass  and  the  flowers."  Who  knows?  Ethnology,  history, 
revelation  and  reason  are  all  dumb  before  the  questioner  concerning  these 
mysteries.  The  pious  and  superstitious  parson.  Cotton  Mather,  of  Boston, 
who  wrote  more  than  one  hundred  and  fifty  years  ago,  took  a short 
method  of  solving  the  question  by  shrewdly  guessing  that  “ the  Devil 
[whom  he  called  the  old  usurping  landlord  of  America]  decoyed  these 
miserable  salvages  hither,  in  hopes  that  the  Gospel  of  our  Lord  Jesus 
Christ  would  never  come  here  to  destroy  or  disturb  his  absolute  empire 
over  them.”  But  the  mounds  and  their  contents,  the  relics  and  the 
theories  have  not  solved  the  great  question.  The  mounds  scattered 
all  over  the  continent — huge  interrogation  points  of  deep  significance — 
and  the  mound-builders  are  yet  the  subjects  of  sharp  speculation  ; and 
we  might  show  wisdom  if  we  should  follow  the  example  of  Parson 


Chap  I.  MOUNDS  AND  MOUND-BUILDERS.  II 

Mather,  who,  when  the  delusion  of  witchcraft  had  made  him  ridiculous, 
declared  that  the  subject  was  “ too  deep  for  ordinary  comprehension,” 
and  referred  its  decision  “ to  the  day  of  judgment.”  We  can  afford  to 
dwell,  without  further  inquiry  for  the  present,  in  the  dim  light  reflected  by 
Bryant’s  soliloquy : 


“ And  did  the  dust 

Of  these  fair  solitudes  once  stir  with  life 
And  burn  with  passion?  Let  the  mighty  mounds 
That  overlook  the  rivers,  or  that  rise 
In  the  dim  forests,  crowded  with  old  oaks. 

Answer.  A race  that  long  has  passed  away 
Built  them  ; a disciplined  and  populous  race 
Heaped  with  long  toil  the  earth,  while  yet  the  Greek 
Was  hewing  the  Pentelicus  to  forms 
Of  symmetry,  and  rearing  on  its  rock 
The  glittering  Parthenon.” 


CHAPTER  II. 


INDIAN  POPULATION  AT  THE  BEGINNING  OE  THE  SIXTEENTH  CENTURY — THEIR  LANGUAGE,  RELIG- 
ION, GOVERNMENT,  RECORDS,  LITERATURE,  DOMESTIC  AND  MILITARY  HABITS,  AND  THEIR 
PHYSICAL  AND  MENTAL  CHARACTERISTICS — THE  IROQUOIS  CONFEDERACY — THEIR  CIVIL  AND 
MILITARY  GOVERNMENT — THE  FIVE  NATIONS — THE  STORY  OF  HI-A-\VAT-HA — ORIGIN  OF  THE 
CONFEDERACY — GEOGRAPHICAL  DISTRIBUTION  OF  THE  INDIANS. 

The  number  of  human  inhabitants  of  the  entire  continent  of  Amer- 
ica, from  the  Frozen  Ocean  to  Cape  Horn,  did  not  exceed  five 
million,  it  is  supposed,  when  Columbus  sailed  from  Spain ; and 
that  within  the  present  domain  of  our  Republic — The  United  States 
OF  America — there  were  only  a little  more  than  one  million  souls,  or 
one  to  each  three  and  a half  square  miles  of  territory.  The  people  of 
the  latter  region  seemed  to  have  all  come  from  the  same  original  stock, 
excepting  some  on  the  borders  of  the  Gulf  of  Mexico.  They  had  high 
cheek  bones  and  broad  faces ; heavy  dark  eyes ; jet  black  hair,  lank  and 
incapable  of  curling  because  of  its  peculiar  structure ; and  skins  of  a dull 
copper  color.  They  spoke  more  than  a hundred  dialects,  or  peculiar 
forms  of  expressing  language,  all  springing,  evidently,  from  a common 
root.  They  were  all  taciturn  or  habitually  silent,  in  society,  and  could 
endure  great  mental  or  physical  suffering  without  visible  emotion.  Their 
plan  of  government  was  simple,  and  there  were  very  few  transgressors  of 
the  law.  Their  theology  or  religious  .system  was  as  simple  as  their  civil 
government.  They  believed  in  a great  GOOD  Spirit  and  a great  Evil 
Spirit,  each  supreme  in  its  sphere ; and  they  deified,  or  made  God,  the  sun, 
moon,  stars,  meteors,  fire,  water,  thunder,  wind,  and  everything  else  which 
seemed  to  be  superior  to  themselves.  There  were  no  unbelievers  among 
them.  They  had  no  written  language,  excepting  rude  picture-writings 
made  on  rocks,  barks  of  trees  or  the  dried  hides  of  beasts.  Their  historical 
records  were  made  upon  the  memory  from  parent  to  child,  as  were  their 
legends,  and  so  transmitted  from  one  generation  to  another.  Their  dwell- 
ings were  rude  huts  made  of  poles  leaning  to  a common  centre,  and  covered 
with  bark  or  the  skins  of  beasts.  The  men  were  engaged  in  war,  hunting 
and  fishing,  whilst  the  women  did  all  of  the  domestic  drudgery.  The 


Chap.  II. 


NORTH  AMERICAN  INDIANS. 


13 


women  also  bore  all  burdens  during  long  journeys ; put  up  the  tents,  or  the 
wigwams,  as  their  dwellings  were  called  ; prepared  the  food  and  clothing ; 
wove  mats  for  beds,  and  planted,  cultivated,  and  gathered  the  scanty  crops 
of  corn,  beans,  peas,  potatoes,  melons  and  tobacco,  wherever  these  products 
were  raised.  In  winter  the  skins  of  wild  beasts  formed  the  clothing  of  these 
rude  people,  and  in  summer  the  men  wore  only  a wrapper  around  the  loins. 
They  sometimes  tattooed  themselves,  that  is,  pricked  the  skin  in  lines  to 
form  shapes  of  objects,  and  making  them  permanent  by  coloring  matter  put 
in  the  punctures ; and  they  were  generally  ornamented  with  the  claws  of 
bears,  the  pearly  parts  of  shells,  and  the  plumage  of  birds.  Their  money 


THE  DWELLINGS  OF  INDIANS. 


consisted  of  little  tubes  made  of  shells,  fastened  upon  belts  or  strung  on 
little  thongs  of  deers’  hide,  which  was  called  wampum.  These  collections 
were  used  in  traffic,  in  treaties,  and  in  giving  tokens  of  friendship.  Their 
weapons  of  war  were  bows  and  arrows,  tomahawks  or  hatchets,  war-clubs, 
and  scalping  knives.  Some  wore  shields  of  bark,  and  also  corselets  of  hides, 
for  protection. 

The  civil  governor  of  a tribe  or  nation  was  called  a Sachem  ; the  military 
leader  was  called  a Chief.  They  were  naturally  proud  and  haughty,  and 
had  great  respect  for  personal  dignity  and  honor.  It  was  offensive  to  a 
Chief  or  Sachem  to  ask  him  his  name,  because  it  implied  that  he  was 
unknown.  Red  Jacket,  the  great  leader  of  the  Seneca  nation,  was  once 
asked  his  name,  in  court,  in  compliance  with  the  legal  form.  He  was  very 
indignant,  and  replied : “ Look  at  the  papers  which  the  white  people  keep 
most  carefully” — (land  cession  treaties) — “they  will  tell  you  who  I am.” 
Elevated  as  were  their  conceptions  of  the  dignity  of  the  men,  they 
utterly  degraded  the  women  to  the  condition  of  abject  slaves.  They  made 


H 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  I. 


them  beasts  of  burden  and  mere  objects  of  convenience.  They  were  never 
allowed  to  join  in  the  amusements  of  the  men,  but  were  permitted  to  sit, 
with  their  children,  as  spectators  around  the  fires  at  war-dances  or  the  horrid 
orgies  after  a victory.  The  husband  had  absolute  control  of  the  body  and 
destiny  of  the  wife,  even  to  the  taking  of  her  life ; and  so  far  was  she 
removed  from  a position  of  equality  with  the  opposite  sex,  that  there  was  no 
society  for  the  cultivation  of  those  refining  qualities  of  woman  which  give 
the  chief  beauty  and  charm  to  civilized  communities. 

The  mental  characteristics,  or  the  workings  of  the  mind  of  the  Indian, 
was  the  same  everywhere.  He  subjected  his  body  to  the  control  of  his  will. 
He  was  schooled  in  taciturnity — taught  to  be  a silent  man — because  it  was 
necessary  in  a society  where  the  sharp  weapon  was  the  quick  response  to  an 
unguarded  or  insulting  word.  He  was  trained,  too,  to  accept  physical  en- 
durance as  a virtue.  Apparent  insensibility  to  fear  or  pain  was  significant  of 
most  sturdy  manhood.  It  was  regarded  as  an  evidence  of  weakness  or  cow- 
ardice for  an  Indian  to  allow  his  countenance  to  be  changed  by  surprise  or 
suffering.  And  so  his  nerves  and  muscles  were  steeled  against  fear  or  pain, 
and  made  absolute  slaves  to  his  will.  An  Inca  or  King  of  ancient  Peru, 
caused  some  of  his  warriors  to  be  instantly  put  to  death  because  they  had 
shown  some  surprise  at  the  appearance  of  Pizarro’s  cavalry,  the  horse  being  a 
novelty  and  wonder  to  that  people.  “ Coward ! ” exclaimed  Pontiac,  an 
Ottawa  chief,  when  he  saw  one  of  his  followers  startled  by  muskets  fired  in 
the  gloom  of  night  by  the  English  garrison  at  Detroit,  and  instantly  cleaved 
his  head  with  a tomahawk.  “ Squaw ! ” cried  Cornstalk,  the  leader  of  the 
Shawnoese  in  the  battle  of  Point  Pleasant,  when  he  saw  one  of  his  warriors 
hiding  behind  a clump  of  bushes,  and  immediately  ordered  him  to  be 
dressed  in  a petticoat  and  to  carry  a pappoose — an  Indian  baby. 

The  brain  of  the  Indian  seemed  to  be  cast  in  a poetic  mold.  In  his 
simple  language — too  poor  to  allow  a profusion  of  words — he  would  express 
ideas  in  elegant  and  poetic  forms,  his  figures  of  speech  being  drawn  from  the 
objects  of  nature  around  him.  What  he  lacked  in  words,  would  be  supplied 
by  those  figures.  “ I stand  in  the  path,”  said  Pontiac,  haughtily,  to  the  com- 
mander of  a British  force  that  marched  into  his  country,  signifying  that  he 
held  kingly  dominion  over  all  that  region,  and  defied  the  intruder’s  power. 
When  Red  Jacket,  the  Seneca  chief,  who  became  intemperate  in  his  later 
years,  saw  all  of  his  eleven  children  die  one  after  another  with  consumption, 
he  regarded  the  calamity  as  a punishment  for  his  sin.  To  a lady  who  had 
known  him  many  years  before,  and  who,  ignorant  of  his  misfortune,  enquired 
of  his  family,  the  old  chief,  with  bowed  head  replied:  “Red  Jacket  was 
once  a great  man,  and  in  favor  with  the  Great  Spirit.  He  was  a lofty  pine 


Chap.  II. 


CHARACTERISTICS  OF  THE  INDIANS. 


15 


among  the  smaller  trees  of  the  forest.  But  after  years  of  glory  he  degraded 
himself  by  drinking  the  fire-water  of  the  white  man.  The  Great  Spirit  has 
looked  upon  him  in  anger,  and  his  lightning  has  stripped  the  pine  of  its 
branches.”  At  a council  at  Vincennes,  over  which  Governor  Harrison  pre- 
sided, Tecumtha,  the  great  Shawnoese  warrior,  made  a speech.  When  it 
was  ended,  it  was  observed  that  no  seat  was  pr^^vided  for  him.  An  officer 
handed  him  one  saying,  in  the  foolish  phraseology  of  talk  with  Indians, 
“Your  father  [meaning  Harrison]  requests  you  to  be  seated  in  this  chair.” 
“ My  father ! ” said  the  chief  scornfully,  whilst  his  eyes  flashed  with  indigna- 
tion. Wrapping  his  broad  blanket  around  him,  and  assuming  the  most 
haughty  attitude,  he  continued  ; “ My  father  is  the  Sun,  and  the  Earth  is  my 
mother.  I will  recline  upon  her  bosom.”  And  then  he  seated  himself  upon 
the  ground. 

Notwithstanding  the  Indians  exhibited  many  of  the  nobler  traits  of 
human  nature,  they  were,  with  a few  notable  exceptions,  cruel  savages,  as  a 
whole,  throughout  the  entire  country  north  of  the  parallel  of  Alabama, 
when  the  Europeans  came  and  made  permanent  settlements  here.  Among 
these  exceptions,  the  most  conspicuous  were  the  five  nations  who  formed 
the  Iroquois  Confederacy  within  the  domain  of  the  present  State  of  New 
York,  and  the  dwellers  in  the  softer  climate  around  the  shores  of  the  Gulf 
of  Mexico. 

The  Iroquois  Confederacy  was  a remarkable  fact  in  history.  It  was  com 
posed  of  five  large  families,  each  having  the  dignified  title  of  a nation. 
These  nations  were  named  respectively,  Mohawks,  Oneidas,  Onondagas, 
Cayugas,  and  Senecas.  They  were  subdivided  into  smaller  families  or  tribes, 
each  having  its  symbol — coat-of-arms — such  as  the  bear,  the  wolf,  the  eagle, 
the  heron,  the  beaver,  the  deer,  the  turkey  or  the  tortoise.  They  occupied 
a belt  of  country  extending  across  the  present  State  of  New  York  from  the 
Hudson  River  to  Lake  Erie,  south  of  the  Adirondack  range  of  great  hills, 
and  north  of  the  Kaatsbergs,  or,  as  they  are  commonly  called,  the  Catskill 
Mountains. 

When  Europeans  became  acquainted  with  the  nations  of  this  league  and 
the  form  of  their  government,  they  were  filled  with  admiration  because  of  its 
wisdom  and  strength.  They  called  these  nations  “ The  Romans  of  the 
New  World,”  because  they  seemed  to  have  many  things  in  common  with 
that  ancient  people,  especially  in  military  affairs.  As  in  old  Rome  the 
soldiers  were  honored  above  all  other  citizens,  so  they  were  among  the  Iro- 
quois ; and  the  warriors,  under  their  chiefs,  were  all-powerful  in  public  affairs. 
Whatever  was  done  in  the  civil  councils  of  the  separate  nations,  or  of  the 
confederacy,  was  subjected  to  review  by  the  soldiery,  who  had  the  right  to 


i6 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  I 


call  councils  whenever  they  pleased,  and  approve  or  disapprove  public  meas- 
ures. And  so  careful  were  the  civil  authorities  to  pay  deference  to  the 
warriors  that  general  answers  to  questions  of  state  policy  were  postponed 
until  the  opinions  of  the  soldiers  might  be  known.  Therefore,  in  nearly 
every  such  council,  decisions  were  made  by  unanimous  consent. 

As  each  of  the  confederated  nations  was  divided  into  several  tribes,  there 
were  thirty  or  forty  sachems  in  the  league.  These  had  inferior  officers 
under  them,  answering  to  our  magistrates  in  towns ; and  so  the  civil  power 
of  the  government  was  quite  widely  distributed.  There  was  not  a man  who 
gained  his  office  otherwise  than  by  his  own  merits,  and  he  held  it  only 
during  good  behavior.  Any  unworthy  action  was  attended  by  dismissal 
from  office  and  the  penalty  of  public  scorn.  They,  as  well  as  the  military 
leaders,  accepted  no  salary,  and  gave  away  any  perquisites  of  their  offices  in 
time  of  peace  and  their  share  of  plunder  in  time  of  war.  There  was  no 
bribery  nor  corruption  in  office,  for  they  had  not  learned  these  arts  of  civili- 
zation. They  felt  themselves  amply  rewarded  by  the  confidence  and  esteem 
of  the  people.  Chosen  by  the  voice  of  universal  suffrage,  and  feeling  the 
responsibilities  which  that  trust  imposed  upon  them,  their  deportment  was 
as  dignified  as  their  position. 

Each  canton  or  nation  was  a distinct  republic,  entirely  independent  of 
the  others  in  what  may  be  termed  the  domestic  concerns  of  the  state  ; but 
each  was  bound  to  others  of  the  league  by  ties  of  honor  and  of  general 
interest.  Each  had  an  equal  voice  in  the  General  Council  or  Congress  of 
the  league,  and  each  possessed  a sort  of  veto  or  prohibitory  power,  which 
was  a guaranty  against  a central  despotism.  The  powers  and  duties  of  the 
chief  magistrate  of  the  Confederacy  were  similar  to  those  imposed  upon  the 
President  of  the  United  States.  He  had  authority  to  “light  the  great 
Council  Fire  ” — to  assemble  the  General  Congress — by  sending  a messenger 
to  the  sachem  of  each  nation,  calling  him  to  a meeting.  With  his  own 
hand  he  kindled  a blaze  around  which  the  representatives  gathered  and 
each  lighted  his  pipe.  He  had  a cabinet  of  six  councillors  of  state,  whose 
powers  were  only  advisory.  In  the  Council,  he  was  only  the  moderator  or 
presiding  officer.  He  had  no  power  to  control,  directly,  military  affairs,  nor 
interfere  with  the  internal  policy  of  the  several  states  of  the  league.  There 
was  really  no  coercive  or  compulsory  power  lodged  anywhere,  that  could  act 
upon  a state  or  individual,  excepting  that  of  despotic  public  opinion. 
There  was  a third  party  in  the  government,  who  exercised  great  influence. 
These  were  the  matrons  or  elderly  women,  who  had  a right  to  sit  in  the 
councils  and  there  exercise  a negative  or  veto  power  on  the  subject  of  a 
declaration  of  war,  or  to  propose  or  demand  a cessation  of  hostilities. 


Chap.  II. 


THE  IROQUOIS  CONFEDERACY. 


17 


Theirs  was  a highly  conservative  power.  They  were  pre-eminently  the 
peace-makers  of  the  league,  for  their  personal  happiness  depended  upon 
peaceful  pursuits.  They  modestly  refrained  from  making  speeches  in  the 
legislature,  but  they  furnished  materials  for  masculine  orators,  and  so 
wielded  a potent  influence.  And  so  it  was  that  in  that  notable  confederacy 
of  barbarians,  formed  long  before  their  contact  with  Europeans,  woman  was 
man’s  co-worker  in  legislation — a thing  unheard  of  in  civilized  nations.  It 
was  a government  the  nearest  to  a pure  democracy,  and  yet  highly  aristo- 
cratic— a government  of  the  best  of  the  people — that  the  world  has  ever 
seen.  It  had  all  of  the  essential  elements  of  our  form  of  government. 

I have  said  that  the  soldiers  of  the  league  controlled  the  legislators. 
The  military  leaders,  like  the  Sachems,  derived  their  authority  from  the 
people,  who  recognized  and  rewarded  their  ability  as  warriors.  They  held 
the  relations  to  the  civil  heads  of  the  nations,  similar  to  that  of  Roman 
generals  to  Emperors,  whom  they  elevated  to  and  deposed  from  office.  The 
army  was  composed  wholly  of  volunteers,  for  there  was  no  power  to  con- 
scribe  men.  Every  able-bodied  man  was  bound,  by  custom,  to  do  military 
duty,  and  he  who  shirked  it  incurred  everlasting  disgrace.  The  ranks  of  the 
army  were,  therefore,  always  full.  The  war-dance  and  the  assemblages  for 


AN  INDIAN  WAR-DANCE. 


amusement  were  the  recruiting  stations,  for  there  the  veteran  warriors, 
painted  and  decorated,  recounted  their  brave  deeds  in  wild  songs,  as  they 
danced  around  great  fires,  singly  or  in  a ring  formed  by  clasped  hands. 
These  stirring  war-songs  inspired  the  young  men  with  desires  to  emulate 


i8 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  I. 


their  example  and  win  the  honors  of  war.  Sometimes  young  men — mere 
lads — seated  among  the  women  as  spectators,  inspired  by  these  songs,  would 
spring  to  their  feet,  and  rushing  out  into  the  magic  circle  in  a complete 
frenzy,  would  seize  each  other  by  the  hand  and  dance  and  yell  around  the 
blazing  pile,  to  the  delight  of  the  old  warriors.  Such  was  the  method  of 
“ beating  up  for  recruits”  among  all  the  barbarian  nations  of  North  America. 
In  the  perfect  freedom  of  this  voluntary  system,  lay  the  amazing  strength 
of  the  league,  for  every  servant  of  the  state  was  an  inspired  and  willing 
one.  And  so  much  did  the  people  of  this  league  reverence  the  inalienable 
rights  of  man,  that  they  never  made  a fellow-man  a serf  or  slave — not  even 
their  captives  in  war. 

There  is  no  positive  proof  as  to  the  time  when  the  Iroquois  Confederacy 
was  formed.  It  was  probably  at  the  beginning  of  the  fifteenth  century,  or 
about  a hundred  years  before  Columbus  crossed  the  Atlantic  Ocean.  When 
Europeans  found  it,  it  was  powerful  and  aggressive.  Like  old  Rome,  the 
state  was  constantly  increasing  in  area  and  population,  by  conquests  and 
annexations.  Had  the  discovery  of  America  by  Europeans  been  deferred  a 
century  longer,  no  doubt  that  republic  would  have  embraced  the  continent ; 
for  the  Five  Nations,  as  the  league  was  called,  had  already  extended  their 
conquests  from  the  great  lakes  on  our  northern  border  almost  to  the  Gulf  of 
Mexico,  and  were  the  terror  of  all  the  other  Indian  tribes  east  and  west  of 
them.  In  unity  was  found  their  strength.  For  a time  even  the  French  in 
Canada,  who  had  taught  them  the  use  of  fire-arms,  maintained  a doubtful 
struggle  against  them.  “ Our  wise  forefathers,”  said  one  of  their  leading 
sachems  to  commissioners  of  Pennsylvania,  Maryland  and  Virginia,  in  1744, 
“established  unity  and  amity  among  the  Five  Nations.  This  has  made 
us  formidable.  This  has  given  us  great  weight  with  our  neighboring 
nations.  We  are  a powerful  confederacy;  and  by  observing  the  same 
methods  our  wise  forefathers  have  taken,  you  will  acquire  fresh  strength  and 
power.  Therefore  I counsel  you,  whatever  may  befal  you,  not  to  fall  out 
with  each  other.” 

Like  every  other  unlettered  nation  whose  history  is  unrecorded  in  books, 
and  whose  origin  is  obscure,  the  Iroquois  have  colored  their  traditions  of  the 
beginning  of  the  league  with  the  hues  of  the  supernatural  or  miraculous. 
Their  story  is  only  another  form  of  the  old  story — older  than  the  ages  of 
history  and  as  widespread  as  the  race.  It  has  come  floating  down  the 
stream  of  time  from  Central  Asia — the  home  of  the  true  Hindoo — the 
Eden — the  Paradise — the  garden — which  produced  the  root  of  the  languages 
and  the  germs  of  the  religion  and  laws  of  Europe  and  of  the  Caucasians  of 
this  continent.  That  teeming  East  is  the  mother  of  those  historic  myths  in 


Chap.  II. 


FORMATION  OF  THE  IROQUOIS  CONFEDERACY. 


19 


which  figure,  in  divine  grandeur,  the  founders  of  nations.  Among  these  is 
Hi-a-wat-ha,  the  founder  of  the  Iroquois  Confederacy.  Their  traditions  tell 
us  that  this  personage,  whom,  in  later  years,  they  revered  as  the  incarnation 
of  wisdom,  came  from  his  serene  dwelling  in  the  skies,  and  took  up  his 
abode  with  the  Onondagas,  then  the  most  favored  of  the  Five  Nations  of 
the  great  Iroquois  family,  living  within  the  domain  of  the  present  State  of 
New  York.  The  Onondagas  occupied  a central  position,  the  Mohawks  and 
Oneidas  being  east  of  them,  and  the  Cayugas  and  Senecas  west  of  them. 
Hi-a-zvat-ha  taught  them  the  art  of  good  living ; the  value  and  strength  of 
mutual  friendship  and  good-will,  and  the  advantages  of  having  fixed  habita- 
tions and  the  cultivation  of  the  earth.  He  was  yet  among  them  when  a band 
of  fierce  warriors  came  down  like  an  icy  blast  from  the  land  north  of  the  great 
lakes,  slaying  everything  human  in  their  path.  He  advised  these  related 
nations  to  call  a council  of  their  wise  men  for  the  purpose  of  forming  a 
league  for  the  common  good,  to  oppose  the  destructive  enemy.  His  advice 
was  approved  and  immediately  acted  upon.  The  chief  men  of  the  Five 
Nations,  followed  by  their  women  and  children,  gathered  in  great  numbers 
on  the  banks  of  the  Onondaga  Lake.  To  the  representatives  of  each  nation 
was  assigned  a particular  position  in  that  council,  with  an  appropriate  title. 

That  was  a notable  gathering  of  gayly-decked  savages  at  the  dividing  line 
between  the  woods  and  the  waters.  There  the  grave  and  dignified  Mohawk 
of  the  east,  met  the  fierce  and  fiery  Seneca  of  the  west,  and  all  waited  in 
silence  for  the  presence  of  Hi-a-zvat-ha,  who  appeared  on  the  lake  in  a mys- 
terious canoe  with  a beautiful  and  gentle  maiden,  his  daughter.  He  landed 
on  the  pebbly  shore,  and  as  he  and  his  sweet  child  ascended  the  bank,  a 
strange  sound  was  heard  in  the  air — like  a wind  rushing  by.  In  the  far 
distant  sky  a white  speck  was  seen,  which  grew  larger  and  larger  as  it 
approached,  in  rapid  descent,  toward  the  spot  where  the  great  multitude 
stood.  It  assumed  the  shape  of  a monster  bird.  As  it  was  evident  that  it 
was  about  to  fall  upon  the  council  ground,  the  people  fled  in  terror,  all  but 
Hi-a-zvat-ha  and  his  daughter.  “ Stand  still,  my  child,”  he  said,  “ it  is 
cowardly  to  fly  from  any  danger.  The  decrees  of  the  Great  Spirit  may  not 
be  averted  by  flight.”  He  had  just  ceased  speaking,  when  the  bird,  an 
enormous  white  heron,  with  extended  wings,  fell  upon  the  maiden  and 
crushed  her  to  the  earth.  Its  fall  was  so  violent,  that  its  beak  and  head 
were  buried  in  the  ground,  and  the  bird  and  the  maiden  both  perished. 
Hi-a-zvat-ha,  though  so  suddenly  and  awfully  bereaved,  .showed  no  signs  of 
emotion.  Not  a muscle  was  moved  by  the  calamity.  He  calmy  beckoned 
to  the  warriors,  who  came  forward  and  plucked  the  beautiful  white  plumes 
of  the  dead  heron,  and  each  placing  one  on  his  head,  wore  it  as  a commemo- 


20 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  1. 


people  waited  in  respectful  silence  until  he  aroused  himself  and  proceeded 
to  the  discharge  of  his  grave  duties.  He  placed  himself  at  the  head  of  the 
council  and  guided  its  action.  He  was  seated  on  a mossy  stone,  and  was 
clad  in  a wolf-skin  mantle  and  a tunic  of  soft  furs  that  hung  from  his  waist. 
His  arms  and  legs  were  bare,  and  without  ornaments,  and  on  his  feet  were 
rich  moccasins.  On  his  head  was  a cap  formed  of  a band  of  soft  deer-skin, 
covered  with  the  small  plumage  of  many  colored  birds.  From  this  arose  a 


rative  decoration.  Thenceforth,  for  many  generations,  it  was  the  custom  of 
the  braves  of  the  Five  Nations  to  wear  a white  heron-plume  on  their  heads 
when  going  out  on  the  war-path,  or  as  a national  insignia  and  memento  of 
the  origin  of  the  league. 

On  removing  the  body  of  the  bird,  no  traces  of  Hi-a-wat-ha  s daughter 
could  be  found.  The  disconsolate  father  was  moody  for  awhile,  and  the 


Chap.  li. 


ADDRESS  OF  HI-A-WAT-HA. 


21 


Stately  pile  of  feathers  of  every  sort,  from  those  of  the  white  heron  and  the 
gray  eagle  to  the  smaller  ones  of  the  golden  oriole  and  the  flaming  scarlet 
taniger.  Near  him  were  seated  the  chief  warriors  and  councillors  of  the 
tribes,  who  joined  in  the  brief  debates  and  listened  with  profound  attention 
to  the  words  of  wisdom  that  fell  from  the  lips  of  Hi-a-wat-ha.  After  listen- 
ing to  the  discussion,  he  arose  and  addressed  the  people  by  nations,  saying, 
as  he  pointed  toward  the  heads  of  each : 

“You  (the  Mohawks)  who  are  sitting  under  the  shadow  of  The  Great 
Tree  whose  roots  sink  deep  into  the  earth,  and  whose  branches  spread  wide 
around,  shall  be  the  first  nation,  nearest  the  rising  of  the  sun,  because  you 
are  warlike  and  mighty. 

“You  (Oneidas)  who  recline  your  bodies  against  The  Everlasting  Stone, 
emblem  of  wisdom,  that  cannot  be  moved,  shall  be  the  second  nation, 
because  you  always  give  wise  counsel. 

“You  (the  Onondagas)  who  have  your  habitation  at  the  foot  of  The  Great 
Hills,  and  are  overshadowed  by  their  crags,  shall  be  the  third  nation,  because 
you  are  all  greatly  gifted  in  speech. 

“You  (the  Cayugas)  the  people  who  live  in  The  Open  Country,  and  pos- 
sess much  wisdom,  shall  be  the  fourth  nation,  because  you  understand  better 
the  art  of  raising  corn  and  beans,  and  making  houses. 

“You  (the  Senecas)  whose  dwelling  is  in  The  Dark  Forest  nearer  the  set- 
ting sun,  and  whose  home  is  everywhere,  shall  be  the  fifth  nation,  because  of 
your  superior  cunning  in  hunting. 

“ Unite,  you  five  nations  and  have  one  common  interest,  and  no  foe  shall 
disturb  or  subdue  you.  You,  the  people,  who  are  as  the  feeble  bushes,  and 
you  who  are  a fishing  people  (addressing  some  who  had  come  from  the  Dela- 
wares, and  from  the  sea-shore),  may  place  yourselves  under  our  protection, 
and  we  will  defend  you.  And  you  of  the  South  and  West  may  do  the  same 
—we  will  protect  you.  We  earnestly  desire  the  alliance  and  friendship  of 
you  all.  Brothers,  if  we  unite  in  this  great  bond,  the  Great  Spirit  will  smile 
upon  us,  and  we  shall  be  free,  prosperous  and  happy.  But  if  we  remain  as 
we  are  we  shall  be  subject  to  his  frown.  We  shall  be  enslaved,  ruined,  per- 
haps annihilated.  We  may  perish  under  the  war-storm,  and  our  names  be 
no  longer  remembered  by  good  men,  nor  repeated  in  the  dance  and  song. 
Brothers,  these  are  the  words  of  Hi-a-wat-ha.  I have  said  it.  I am 
done.” 

The  confederation  was  formed  the  next  day.  Then  Hi-a-wat-ha' s mis- 
sion to  the  Iroquois  was  ended.  He  gave  them  more  wise  advice,  and  then 
announced  his  intention  to  return  to  his  divine  habitation.  Whilst  the  mul- 
titude stood  in  silence  and  awe,  he  went  down  to  the  water’s  edge  and 


22 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book.  I. 


entered  his  mysterious  canoe.  Suddenly  the  air  was  filled  with  delicious 
music,  like  the  warbling  of  innumerable  birds,  that  charmed  the  senses  of 
the  wondering  people.  Slowly  the  canoe  and  its  precious  burden  arose  in 
the  air,  higher  and  higher,  until  it  was  lost  in  the  blue  depths  to  the  vision 
of  eager  eyes  gazing  after  it  until  it  vanished.  Hi-a-wat-ha  had  returned 
to  the  region  of  the  Blessed. 

Atatarho,  a chief  of  the  Onondagas,  and  eminent  for  his  wisdom  and 
valor,  was  chosen  President  or  Grand  Sachem  of  the  League.  A delegation 
of  the  Mohawks  were  sent  to  offer  him  the  honor.  They  found  him  seated 
in  grim  solitude  in  the  dark  recesses  of  a swamp,  smoking  his  pipe,  with 
drinking  vessels  around  him  made  of  the  skulls  of  his  enemies,  as  were  those 
of  the  old  barbarian  Northmen  centuries  before  Lief  came  to  Vineland. 
The  delegation  could  not  go  near  his  person,  for  he  was  clothed  with  hissing 
serpents,  emblems  of  wisdom.  The  Mohawks  stood  at  a distance  under  the 
branches  of  a tamarac,  whilst  their  leader  approached  nearer  and  announced 
their  errand.  Atatarho  arose,  and  with  dignity  accepted  the  office.  The 
serpents  were  transformed  into  a mantle  of  bear’s  skin ; and  following  the 
delegation,  the  president  of  the  league  went  to  the  council  and  there 
declared  that  he  would  do  the  will  of  the  sages  and  warriors  of  the  confed- 
erated nations.  From  that  time  the  Iroquois  Confederacy  was  invincible 
until  the  white  man  came  and,  by  craft  and  power,  paralyzed  its  strength 
and  finally  destroyed  it. 

When  the  white  man  came,  early  in  the  sixteenth  century,  to  make  per- 
manent settlements  in  our  country,  he  found  the  dusky  inhabitants,  as  we 
have  observed,  speaking  about  a hundred  different  dialects.  But  there  were 
only  eight  radically  distinct  nations.  They  are  known  as  the  Algonquins, 
Huron-Iroquois,  Cherokees,  Catawbas,  Uchees,  Natchez,  Mobilians  or  P'lor- 
idians,  and  Dakotahs  or  Sioux.  Algonquin  was  a name  given  by  the  French 
to  a large  collection  of  families  north  and  south  of  the  great  lakes,  who 
speaking  dialects  of  the  same  language,  seemed  to  belong  to  the  same 
nation.  These  inhabited  the  territory  now  included  in  all  Canada,  New 
England,  a part  of  New  York  and  Pennsylvania,  the  States  of  New  Jersey, 
Delaware,  Maryland  and  Virginia,  Eastern  North  Carolina  above  Cape  Fear, 
a large  portion  of  Kentucky  and  Tennessee,  and  all  north  and  west  of  these 
States  eastward  of  the  Mississippi  River.  Within  the  folds  of  the  Algon- 
quin nation  were  the  Huron-Iroquois  in  Canada,  New  York,  Pennsylvania 
and  Ohio;  a few  families  in  Southern  Virginia  and  upper  North  Carolina, 
and  the  Iroquois  Confederacy  in  the  State  of  New  York. 

The  Cherokees  inhabited  the  picturesque  and  fertile  region  in  the  upper 
part  of  Georgia  and  its  vicinity,  where  the  mountain  ranges  that  form  the 


Chap.  II. 


DISTRIBUTION  OF  THE  INDIANS. 


23 


watershed  between  the  Atlantic  Ocean  and  the  Mississippi  River  melt  into 
the  lowlands  which  border  the  Gulf  of  Mexico.  They  were  called  the 
mountaineers  of  the  South,  and  were  the  most  formidable  of  all  the  foes  of 
the  conquering  Iroquois.  Their  neighbors  on  the  east  were  the  Catawbas, 
who  dwelt  upon  the  borders  of  the  Yadkin  and  Catawba  rivers  on  both 
sides  of  the  boundary  line  between  North  and  South  Carolina.  The  Iro- 
quois made  incursions  into  their  country,  but  they  never  brought  the 
Catawbas  under  the  yoke  of  that  confederacy.  The  Uchees  were  only  the 
remnant  of  a once  powerful  people.  They  were  living  in  the  beautiful  land 
in  Georgia  between  the  sites  of  Augusta  and  Milledgeville,  along  the  Oconee 
and  around  the  head-waters  of  the  Ogeechee  and  Chattahoochee.  They 
claimed  to  be  the  descendants  of  a people  more  ancient  than  those  around 
them,  and  they  had  no  traditions,  as  all  the  others  had,  of  having  migrated 
from  another  country. 


INDIANS  SPEARING  FISH. 


The  Natchez,  who  occupied  a territory  east  of  the  Mississippi  stretching 
north-eastward  from  the  site  of  the  City  of  Natchez,  along  the  borders  of 
the  Pearl  River  to  the  head-waters  of  the  Chickasahaw  River,  claimed  to  be 
an  older  nation  than  the  Uchees.  Like  the  other  Indians  of  the  Gulf 
region,  they  were  fire  and  sun  worshippers,  and  made  sacrifices  to  the  great 
luminary.  The  Mobilians  or  Floridians  occupied  a very  large  territory  that 
bordered  on  the  Gulf  of  Mexico.  It  stretched  along  the  Atlantic  coast 
from  the  mouth  of  the  Cape  Fear  River  to  the  extremity  of  the  Florida 
3 


24 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  I. 


peninsula,  and  westward  to  the  Mississippi  River.  They  also  held  jurisdic- 
tion up  that  stream  to  the  mouth  of  the  Ohio  River.  Their  domain  in- 
cluded the  States  of  Florida,  Alabama  and  Mississippi,  all  of  Georgia  not 
occupied  by  the  Cherokees  and  Uchees,  and  portions  of  South  Carolina, 
Tennessee  and  Kentucky.  The  nation  was  divided  into  three  confederacies, 
known  respectively^iis  the  Creek,  Choctaw  and  Chickasaw. 

Under  the  general  title  of  Dakotas  or  Sioux,  have  been  grouped  a vast 
number  of  tribes  west  of  the  Mississippi  River  and  the  great  lakes,  with 
whom  the  earlier  French  explorers  came  in  contact.  They  spoke,  appa- 
rently, dialects  of  the  same  language,  and  were  regarded  as  one  nation. 
They  inhabited  the  vast  domain  stretching  northward  from  the  Arkansas 
River  to  the  western  tributaries  of  Lake  Winnepeg,  and  westward  along 
that  line  to  the  eastern  slopes  of  the  Rocky  Mountains.  These  have  been 
arranged  in  four  classes,  namely,  the  Winnebagoes,  the  Assinniboins  or 
Sioux  proper,  the  Minetarees  and  the  Southern  Sioux. 

Such  was  the  general  geographical  distribution  of  the  Indians  when 
European  settlements  were  begun  among  them.  They  were  not  stationary 
residents  of  a fixed  domain  ; nor,  with  the  exception  of  the  Iroquois  Con- 
federacy, was  there  the  semblance  of  a national  government  amongst  them. 
They  had  wandered  for  centuries,  and  some  of  them  had  evidently  traversed 
the  whole  continent.  Yet  they  were  not  a nomadic  race,  or  a people  seek- 
ing pasture  for  cattle,  living  in  tents,  and  having  no  fixed  home  for  a month 
at  a time.  Neither  were  they  agriculturists,  steadily  cultivating  the  soil. 
The  horse,  cow,  sheep  and  swine  were  unknown  to  them.  They  had  never 
tamed  the  buffalo  nor  the  stately  elk  for  labor  or  food ; nor  had  they  sheared 
a fleece  from  the  great-horned  Rocky  Mountain  sheep.  Like  primitive 
man,  the  Indian  was  a hunter  and  fisher,  and  depended  for  his  sustenance 
chiefly  upon  the  chase  and  the  hook. 


CHAPTER  III. 


THE  INDIANS  OF  THE  GULF  REGION — THEIR  RELIGIOUS  CEREMONIES  AS  SUN-WORSHIPPERS — THEIR 
DOMESTIC  HABITS,  COSTUMES,  DWELLINGS  AND  PRODUCTIONS — THEIR  MILITARY  DEFENCES 
AND  WAR-LIKE  OPERATIONS — THEIR  MARRIAGE  AND  FUNERAL  CEREMONIES — THE  FATE  OF 
THE  INDIANS— EUROPEAN  SOCIETY  IN  THE  FIFTEENTH  CENTURY — THEORIES  RESPECTING  THE 
SHAPE  OF  THE  EARTH— DISCOVERIES  BY  THE  PORTUGUESE — POPULAR  TRADITIONS  CONCERN- 
ING THE  ATLANTIC  OCEAN — CHRISTOPHER  COLUMBUS  : HIS  THEORIES  AND  ASPIRATIONS — HIS 
FAMILY  RELATIONS  AND  EARLY  VOYAGES — HIS  EFFORTS  TO  OBTAIN  MEANS  FOR  MAKING  A 
VOYAGE  OF  DISCOVERY — CONDUCT  OF  THE  KING  OF  PORTUGAL. 

TN  the  warmer  region  around  the  Gulf  of  Mexico  dwelt  a people  having 
the  same  general  hue  of  skin,  form  of  features  and  texture  of  hair  as 
those  of  the  more  northern  countries.  They  were  either  the  descend- 
ants of  the  Central  or  South  Americans,  or  their  habits  of  life  had  been 
modified  by  contact  with  the  half  civilized  people  of  those  countries.  They 
were  an  athletic  and  vigorous  race.  The  men  were  well  proportioned,  active 
and  graceful  in  all  their  movements.  The  women  were  smaller,  exquisitely 
formed,  and  some  of  them  were  very  beautiful. 

In  the  colder  weather  of  the  winter,  the  common  men  wore  a mantle 
made  of  a sort  of  cloth  manufactured  of  the  soft  inner  bark  of  trees,  inter- 
woven with  hemp  or  a species  of  flax.  This  was  thrown  gracefully  over  the 
shoulder,  leaving  the  right  arm  exposed.  Around  the  loins  was  a very 
short  tunic,  extending  half  way  down  the  thighs,  or  only  a wrapper.  The 
richer  and  nobler  sort  of  men  wore  beautiful  mantles  made  of  feathers  of 
every  hue,  exquisitely  arranged,  or  the  skins  of  fur-bearing  animals,  with 
dressed  deer-skin  tunics  wrought  in  colors,  and  moccasins  and  buskins  of  the 
same  materials.  The  women  of  the  better  sort,  at  the  cooler  season,  wore  a 
garment  of  cloth  or  feathers  or  furs  wrought  like  the  mantles  of  the  men. 
It  was  wrapped  more  closely  around  the  body  at  the  waist,  and  fell  grace- 
fully almost  to  the  knee.  The  rest  of  the  form  was  left  bare  excepting  in 
the  coldest  weather,  when  they  wore  short  mantles  that  fell  from  the  neck 
to  the  hips.  Their  heads  were  always  uncovered,  but  the  men  wore  a skull- 
cap of  cloth  ornamented  with  beautiful  sea-shells,  the  claws  of  beasts,  or 
strings  of  pearls.  It  is  related  that  a queen,  on  the  banks  of  the  Savannah 
River,  took  from  her  neck  a magnificent  string  of  pearls  and  twined  it 


26 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  I. 


around  that  of  De  Soto,  the  early  Spanish  discoverer  of  the  region.  Some- 
times they  wore  pearl  pendants  in  their  ears.  In  summer  both  sexes  went 
without  clothing,  excepting  a drapery  of  what  is  now  known  in  that  region 
as  Spanish  moss,  gathered  from  the  trees.  This  was  fastened  at  the  waist 
and  fell  in  graceful  negligence  to  the  thighs.  The  chiefs,  and  prophets,  and 
other  principal  men,  and  their  wives,  painted  their  breasts  and  the  front  part 
of  their  bodies,  with  stripes  of  white,  yellow  and  red ; and  some  practiced  a 
kind  of  tattooing.  Sometimes  the  fops  of  this  class  might  be  seen  prome- 


SOUTHERN  INDIANS. 


nading,  at  evening,  in  beautiful  mantles  of  deer-skins  and  of  the  marten, 
which  trailed  on  the  ground,  or  were  held  by  attendants ; and  if  they  were 
warriors,  on  their  heads  might  be  seen  lofty  plumes  of  the  eagle  and  the 
flamingo. 

The  houses  of  the  chiefs,  spacious  and  airy,  stood  upon  large  mounds, 
natural  or  artificial,  that  were  ascended  by  steps  of  wood  or  earth.  These 
dwellings  were  built  of  timber,  sometimes  in  the  form  of  a great  pavilion 
with  a broad  piazza  around  it,  furnished  with  benches.  They  were  covered 


Chap.  III. 


WEAPONS  OF  SOUTHERN  INDIANS. 


27 


with  the  leaves  of  the  palmetto,  or  thatched  with  straw ; and  sometimes 
they  were  roofed  with  reeds  after  the  manner  of  tiles.  Their  winter  houses 
were  daubed  inside  and  out  with  clay. 

The  weapons  of  the  Floridians  for  hunting  and  war  were  strong  bows 
and  arrows,  and  javelins.  Their  arrows  were  made  of  fine  dried  cane,  tipped 
with  buck-horn  and  pointed  with  flint,  hard  wood,  or  fish  bones.  They  were 
carried  in  a quiver  made  of  the  skin  of  the  fawn,  cased  at  bottom  with  the 
hide  of  the  bear  or  the  alligator,  and  slung  by  a thong  of  deer’s  skin  so  as 
to  rest  on  the  hip.  The  warriors  all  wore  shields  in  battle,  composed  of 
wood,  split  cane,  or  the  hide  of  the  alligator  and  buffalo.  On  the  left  arm 
they  wore  a small  shield  of  bark  to  protect  it  from  the  rebound  of  the  bow- 
string. They  also  had  short  swords  made  of  hard  wood.  When  a chief 
was  about  to  declare  war,  he  sent  a party  at  night  toward  the  town  of  the 


DECLARATION  OF  WAR  BY  SOUTHERN  INDIANS. 


enemy,  to  stick  arrow^s  in  the  ground  at  the  cross-paths  or  other  conspicuous 
places  near  it.  From  these  arrows  waved  long  locks  of  human  hair  as 
tokens  of  scalping.  Then  he  would  assemble  his  painted  warriors,  and  after 
some  wild  ceremonies,  would  turn  reverentially  toward  the  sun,  with  a 
wooden  javelin  in  his  hand,  and  invoking  the  aid  of  the  great  God  of 
Fire,  he  would  take  a vessel  of  water,  and  sprinkle  it  around,  saying; 
“ Thus  may  you  do  with  the  blood  of  your  enemies.”  Raising  another  vessel 
of  water,  he  would  pour  it  upon  the  fire  which  had  been  kindled,  and  as  it 
was  extinguished  he  would  say : “ Thus  may  you  destroy  your  enemies  and 
bring  home  their  scalps.”  When  the  battle  was  over,  the  victors  cruelly 
mutilated  the  bodies  of  their  captives.  Carrying  their  dissevered  limbs  and 
their  scalps  upon  spear-points,  into  the  public  square,  they  were  there  placed 
on  poles,  and  the  people  celebrated  the  triumph  by  dancing  around  these 


28 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  I. 


trophies  and  singing  wild  songs  of  joy.  The  widows  of  those  lost  in  battle 
gathered  around  the  chief  with  piteous  cries,  praying  him  to  avenge  the 
deaths  of  their  loved  ones,  asking  him  for  an  allowance  during  their  widow- 
hood and  permission  to  marry  again  as  soon  as  the  law  would  allow.  Then 
they  visited  the  burial  places  of  their  husbands,  and  cutting  off  their  long 
tresses,  strewed  them  over  the  graves.  When  their  hair  had  grown  to  its 
usual  length  they  were  ready  to  marry  again. 

Hunting,  fishing  and  the  cultivation  of  the  rich  land  were  the  chief  em- 
ployments of  these  people.  The  cotton  plant  was  unknown  to  them,  but 
hemp  and  flax  were  quite  abundant.  The  women  assisted  the  men  in  the 
fields,  in  the  cultivation  of  corn,  beans,  peas,  squashes,  and  pumpkins,  which 
yielded  enormous  returns  for  the  little  labor  bestowed.  These  productions 
were  stored  in  granaries  made  of  stone  and  earth  and  covered  with  mats,  for 
winter  use ; also  preserved  meats.  They  obtained  salt  by  evaporation,  and 
the  women  were  generally  good  cooks  of  the  simple  food.  They  made  and 
used  pottery  for  kitchen  service,  some  of  it  skillfully  constructed  and  quite 
beautiful.  They  were  skillful  artisans,  as  evinced  by  their  arms,  houses, 
beautiful  barges  and  canoes,  and  ornaments.  They  had  fortifications  with 
moats  or  ditches ; and  walled  towns ; and  some  of  their  temples  were  grand, 
imposing  and  beautiful.  Their  roofs  were  steep  and  covered  with  mats  of 
split  cane,  interwoven  so  compactly  that  they  resembled  the  rush  carpeting 
of  the  Moors.  At  the  entrances  to  some  of  the  temples,  and  in  niches  in 
the  interior,  were  well-wrought  wooden  statues,  some  of  them  of  persons 
who  were  entombed  in  the  sacred  place.  Between  these  were  shields  of 
various  sizes,  made  of  strongly  woven  reeds  adorned  with  pearls  and  colored 
tassels.  Rich  offerings  of  pearls  and  deer-skins,  and  the  furs  of  martens  and 
other  animals  were  seen  in  these  temples  in  great  profusion,  all  dedicated  to 
the  Sun,  the  great  God  whom  they  worshipped. 

The  theology  or  religious  system  of  these  people  was  very  simple.  They 
regarded  the  Sun  as  the  Supreme  Deity,  and  venerated  the  moon  and  certain 
brilliant  stars.  In  all  their  invocations  of  blessings  upon  their  chiefs  or 
upon  themselves,  the  Sun  was  appealed  to,  as  we  appeal  to  God.  “ May  the 
Sun  guard  you  ! ” “ May  the  Sun  be  with  you  !”  were  usual  forms  of  invo- 

cation. At  the  beginning  of  March  the  men  of  a community  selected  the 
skin  of  the  largest  deer,  with  the  heads  and  legs  attached,  which  they  filled 
with  a variety  of  fruit  and  grain.  It  was  served  up,  and  appeared  like  the 
live  creature  in  form.  Its  horns  were  garlanded  with  fruits  and  early  spring 
flowers.  Then  the  effigy  was  carried  in  a procession  of  all  the  inhabitants, 
to  a plain,  and  placed  at  the  top  of  a high  post.  There,  at  the  moment  when 
the  sun  appeared  upon  the  eastern  horizon,  the  people  all  fell  upon  their 


Chap.  III. 


RELIGION,  AND  SOCIAL  CEREMONIES. 


29 


knees,  with  their  faces  toward  the  rising  luminary,  and  implored  the  god  of 
day  to  grant  them,  the  ensuing  season,  an  abundance  of  fruit  and  grain  as 
good  as  those  which  they  then  offered. 

The  funeral  ceremonies  of  these  people,  especially  those  on  the  death  of 
a chief  or  prophet,  were  very  peculiar.  The  body  underwent  a sort  of  em- 
balming, when  it  was  placed  in  the  ground  in  a sitting  posture  by  the  nearest 
relatives  of  the  deceased.  Then  food  and  money  were  placed  by  its  side, 
and  a conical  mound  of  earth  was  piled  over  it,  at  the  foot  of  which  was 


A CEREMONIAL  INVOCATION. 


made  a paleing  of  arrows  stuck  in  the  ground.  Around  this  tomb  the 
people  gathered  in  great  numbers,  some  standing,  some  sitting,  and  all 
howling.  This  ceremony  continued  three  days  and  nights,  after  which,  for 
a long  time,  chosen  women  visited  the  tomb  three  times  a day,  morning, 
noon  and  night.  The  chief,  whilst  he  was  alive,  was  held  in  the  greatest 
veneration,  for,  like  the  Assyrian  kings,  he  was  both  monarch  and  pontiff — 
the  chief  magistrate  and  the  high  priest.  A cruel  sacrifice  was  made  to  him 


30 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  I. 


of  every  first-born  male  child,  a custom  learned  from  the  Central  Americans. 
It  symbolized  the  devotion  and  surrender  of  the  entire  strength  of  the 
nation  to  the  chief.  Sitting  upon  a bench  on  one  side  of  a large  circle,  a 
block  two  feet  in  height  was  placed  before  him.  The  child  was  brought  by 
a dancing-girl  and  placed  upon  the  block,  and  the  young  mother,  weeping  in 
agony,  was  compelled  to  stand  near  it,  to  make  the  offering.  A prophet 
dashed  out  its  brains,  and  then  a group  of  girls  danced  around  the  altar  of 
sacrifice,  singing  songs. 

When  a young  chief  desired  to  marry,  he  would  send  a few  of  his  princi- 
pal men  to  select  from  the  daughters  of  the  first  families  one  of  the  young- 
est and  most  beautiful  of  the  marriageable  ones.  The  chosen  bride  was 
then  painted  and  decorated  in  the  most  tasteful  manner,  preparatory  to 
the  nuptials.  Brilliant  colors,  and  costly  pearls  and  shells,  adorned  her 
person.  She  was  covered  from  her  waist  almost  to  her  knees  with  a beau- 
tiful tunic  of  rich  feathers.  Then  she  was  placed  in  a sedan  chair,  the  top 
of  which  was  an  arch  of  green  boughs  festooned  and  garlanded  with  flowers. 
In  that  state  she  was  conveyed  to  the  presence  of  her  future  lord  on  the 
shoulders  of  six  noblemen  who  were  preceded  by  musicians  and  two  men 
bearing  magnificent  feather  fans,  and  followed  by  dancing-girls  and  the 
immediate  relatives  of  the  bride.  When  arrived  at  the  residence  of  the  chief, 
she  was  received  by  the  lords  in  waiting,  who  conducted  her  to  a seat  by  the 
side  of  her  husband,  on  an  elevated  dais,  where  great  pomp  and  ceremony 
were  displayed  by  those  in  attendance.  The  bride  and  groom  were  con- 
stantly fanned  by  beautiful  maidens,  if  the  weather  was  warm  ; and  they 
were  regaled  with  the  un fermented  juice  of  the  grape,  in  its  season,  or  with 
a kind  of  sherbert  made  of  orange  juice,  at  other  times.  At  near  the  sun- 
setting the  chief  and  his  young  wife  walked  out  into  an  open  field,  followed 
by  all  the  people,  and  at  the  last  parting  ray  of  the  luminary,  they  pros- 
trated themselves  toward  the  west  and  invoked  the  blessings  of  the  Sun 
upon  themselves  and  their  children.  From  that  moment  until  the  stars 
appeared  the  people  indulged  in  music  and  dancing — the  music  of  the  reed 
and  a sort  of  tambourine  and  the  dancing  of  young  men  and  maidens — 
when  the  chief  and  his  bride  retired  to  their  dwelling,  there,  with  friends,  to 
partake  of  a marriage-feast  by  the  light  of  lamps. 

Such  is  an  outline  picture  of  the  people  with  whom  the  Spaniards  first 
came  in  contact  on  the  continent  after  the  discoveries  of  Columbus  and  his 
cotemporaries.  These,  with  the  Iroquois  Confederacy,  are  the  two  notable 
exceptions  spoken  of,  to  the  general  character  and  habits  of  the  dusky 
nations  who  then  inhabited  North  America.  We  now  have  a tolerably  cor- 
rect impression  of  these  barbarian  and  savage  communities  whose  history, 


Chap.  III. 


DESTINY  OF  THE  INDIANS. 


31 


down  to  the  present  time,  forms  an  important  part  of  that  of  our  Republic. 
Some  of  them  have  gone  up  in  the  social  scale,  and  others  have  gone  down  : 
some  of  them  have  disappeared,  and  other  tribes  have  been  discovered.  All 
are  gradually  fading  away  from  the  earth  ; and  the  time  cannot  be  far  distant 
when  the  last  of  the  dusky  race  may  sit  on  the  verge  of  the  Pacific  Ocean, 
with  his  face  toward  the  setting  sun,  and  chant  the  death-song  of  his  people, 
saying : 

“ We,  the  rightful  lords  of  yore, 

Are  the  rightful  lords  no  more. 

Like  the  silver  mists  we  fail ; 

Like  the  red  leaves  in  the  gale — 

Fail  like  shadows  when  the  dawning 
Waves  the  bright  flag  of  the  morning.” 


CARRYING  THE  BETROTHED  TO  THE  CACIQUE. 


But  they  will  leave  behind  them  myriads  of  memories  of  their  existence 
here,  in  their  beautiful  and  significant  names  of  our  mountains  and  valleys, 
our  lakes  and  rivers,  our  states,  counties,  villages  and  cities.  We  may  say  to 
our  people, 

“ That,  mid  the  forests  where  they  warr’d. 

There  rings  no  hunter’s  shout ; 

But  their  name  is  on  your  waters — 

Ye  may  not  wash  it  out.” 


32 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  I. 


At  this  point  in  our  story,  the  scene  shifts,  as  in  a dissolving  view,  to 
another  continent,  and  presently  appears  the  grand  procession  of  discoverers 
who  opened  the  way  to  settlements  in  this  new-found  land. 

We  have  remarked  that  from  the  period  of  the  visits  of  the  Northmen  to 
Vineland  (America)  until  Columbus  crossed  the  Atlantic  Ocean,  great 
changes  had  taken  place  in  Europe.  The  empire  of  the  Franks,  founded  by 
Charlemagne,  had  been  succeeded  by  that  of  the  more  progressive  Germans, 
in  the  mastery  of  Europe,  with  Otho  the  Great  as  the  initial  Emperor.  The 
Crusades  had  broken  up  the  inertia  or  stagnation  of  European  society. 
They  had  unbarred  the  gates  of  the  East,  and  let  in  a flood  of  light  from  the 
sources  of  science  and  philosophy.  The  Northmen  or  Normans  had  taken 
possession  of  some  of  the  fairest  regions  of  France  (Normandy),  and  had 
invaded,  conquered,  and  refined  England.  The  feudal  system — a system  in 
which  lands  are  held  by  a few  nobles  who  farm  them  out  as  a privilege 
secured  by  military  service — had  given  way  to  an  established  political  system 
in  the  form  of  monarchies  or  powerful  republics.  Commercial  cities  were 
gathering  and  distributing  the  products  of  industry  and  flecking  the  seas 
with  white  sails,  proving  that  the  arts  of  peace  are  far  more  productive  of 
happiness  than  the  pursuit  of  war.  Over  all  Europe,  from  the  Carpathian 
mountains  to  the  sea,  and  from  the  Mediterranean  to  the  Baltic,  there  was 
wonderful  intellectual,  moral  and  physical  activity  at  the  middle  of  the 
fifteenth  century.  Trade  had  linked  various  peoples  in  bonds  of  mutual 
interest  and  sympathy,  and  Europe,  with  the  birth  of  the  printing-press  at 
that  time,  was  prepared  to  enter  upon  that  new  and  bright  era  of  scientific 
investigation  and  maritime  discovery  which  speedily  appeared.  When  Lief 
came  to  America,  the  gloom  of  the  dark  ages  was  most  intense — it  was  the 
world’s  midnight.  When  at  near  the  close  of  the  fifteenth  century  Columbus 
crossed  the  Atlantic,  the  faint  gleam  was  seen  of  the  dawn  of  that  glorious 
day  in  the  history  of  civilization,  whose  sunrise  was  heralded  by  the  bold 
assertion  that  man  had  an  inalienable  right  to  the  free  exercise  of  his  reason 
in  faith  and  practice,  whether  in  religion,  politics,  or  morality. 

Early  in  the  fifteenth  century,  commerce  had  stimulated  maritime 
adventure  which  led  to  maritime  discoveries.  Its  most  wonderful  activity 
was  seen  in  the  Mediterranean  and  Adriatic  seas.  For  the  control  of  this 
commerce,  Genoa  on  the  Mediterranean  and  Venice  on  the  Adriatic,  both  in 
Italy,  were  powerful  and  zealous  rivals.  The  commerce  of  India  was  very 
profitable,  and  for  the  monopoly  of  it,  these  rivals  fiercely  contended  through 
diplomacy  and  arms.  That  commerce  found  its  chief  communications  with 
Genoa  by  way  of  the  Indus,  the  Oxus,  and  the  Caspian  and  Black  Seas.  It 
found  its  chief  communications  with  Venice  by  way  of  the  Persian  Gulf,  the 


Chap.  III. 


COMMERCE  AND  SCIENCE. 


33 


river  Euphrates  and  the  Red  Sea  to  Syrian  and  Egyptian  ports.  To  these 
and  the  ports  of  the  Black  Sea  the  Italian  vessels  resorted  for  the  silks,  and 
spices,  and  other  rich  commodities  of  the  Orient. 

In  the  sharp  contests  of  these  rival  republics  for  commercial  supremacy, 
the  Venetians  finally  outgeneraled  the  Genoese.  They  acquired  by  diplo- 
macy and  business  activity  such  influence  over  the  ports  of  the  Black  Sea 
and  the  Levant,  that  the  Genoese  saw  ruin  before  them  ; and  they  began  to 
look  in  other  directions  for  relief  and  continued  prosperity.  With  the 
revival  of  learning  which  the  Crusades  (or  the  wars  of  Christians  for  the 
rescue  of  the  Holy  Sepulchre  of  Jesus,  at  Jerusalem,  from  the  hands  of  the 
Turks)  had  been  chiefly  instrumental  in  producing,  came  into  Europe  a 
knowledge  of  the  theories  and  demonstrations  of  the  Arabian  astronomers, 
concerning  the  globular  form  of  the  earth.  Intelligent  mariners  and  others 
had  become  satisfied  that  it  was  globular ; and  the  idea  was  finally  impressed 
as  truth  upon  the  minds  of  the  Genoese  merchants,  whilst  the  clergy  vehe- 
mently opposed  it.  Reason  and  Faith  came  into  collision.  Reason  pre- 
vailed, and  the  Genoese  merchants  were  willing  to  allow  the  navigators  of 
their  ships  to  sail  westward  in  quest  of  India. 

Meanwhile  the  merchants  of  Western  Europe,  who  were  wholly  excluded 
from  direct  participation  in  the  commerce  of  the  East  through  the  Mediter- 
ranean by  the  jealous  Italians,  were  seeking  other  channels  of  communica- 
tion with  India.  In  this  enterprise  they  had  the  powerful  aid  of  Prince 
Henry,  son  of  John  the  First,  King  of  Portugal  and  the  English  princess 
Philippa  of  Lancaster,  sister  of  King  Henry  the  Fourth  of  England.  Whilst 
Prince  Henry  was  with  his  father  on  an  expedition*  into  Africa,  he  received 
much  information  from  the  Moors  concerning  the  coast  of  Guinea  and  other 
parts  that  were  then  unknown  to  Europeans.  He  believed  that  important 
discoveries  might  be  made  by  navigating  along  the  western  coast  of  that 
continent,  and  on  his  return  home  the  idea  absorbed  his  whole  attention. 
He  retired  from  court,  and  at  a beautiful  country  seat  near  Cape  St.  Vincent, 
in  full  view  of  the  ocean,  he  drew  around  him  men  of  science  and  learning. 
Being  a studious  and  profound  mathematician  himself,  he  had  become 
master  of  all  the  astronomy  then  known  to  the  Spaniards.  With  these 
scientific  men  and  scholars,  he  studied  every  branch  of  learning  connected 
with  maritime  art,  and  they  became  satisfied,  from  ancient  chronicles  and 
fair  induction,  that  Africa  was  circumnavigable — that  India  might  be  reached 
by  going  around  the  southern  shores  of  that  continent.  This- idea  was  con- 
trary to  the  assertions  of  Ptolemy,  the  standard  geographer  at  that  time,  and 
of  many  learned  men ; but  Prince  Henry  adhered  to  his  belief  in  the  face 
of  threats  of  the  priests  and  the  sneers  of  learned  professors. 


34 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  1. 


Wild  tales  were  believed  of  dreadful  reefs  and  stormy  headlands  stretch- 
ing far  out  at  sea,  and  of  a fiery  climate  at  the  equator  which  no  living  thing, 
not  even  whales  in  the  depth  of  the  ocean,  could  pass  because  of  the  great 
heat.  It  was  believed  that  the  waves  rolled  in  boiling  water  upon  the  fiery 
sands  of  the  coasts,  and  that  whoever  should  pass  beyond  Cape  Bajador 
would  never  return.  Against  every  species  of  opposition  Prince  Henry  per- 
severed. His  navigators  scattered  all  these  fallacies  and  tales  to  the  winds 
by  doubling  Cape  Bajador  and  penetrating  the  tropical  regions.  At  length, 
in  the  year  1497,  Vasquez  de  Gama,  a Portuguese  mariner  who  had  been  in 
Prince  Henry’s  service  in  his  youth,  passed  around  the  Cape  of  Good  Hope 
(which  he  so  named),  with  an  Arabian  chart  directing  his  course,  and  cross- 
ing the  Indian  Ocean  landed  in  India  at  Calcutta.  Africa  was  circumnavi- 
gated, and  a new  way  was  opened  to  India  by  the  ocean  pathway  of  Pharaoh 
Necho.  Prince  Henry  had  then  been  dead  twenty-four  years.  He  saw  the 
promises  of  this  achievement  from  afar,  but  he  did  not  live  to  enjoy  this  full 
triumph  of  reason.  But  a greater  triumph  had  lately  been  achieved  than 
when  De  Gama  passed  the  Cape  of  Good  Hope. 

Just  at  the  evening  twilight  of  a beautiful  day  in  October,  1485,  a man 
about  fifty  years  of  age  (tall,  well-formed,  and  muscular ; long  visaged ; a 
face  of  fair  complexion,  a little  freckled  and  usually  ruddy,  but  now  pale  and 
careworn  in  expression  ; an  aquiline  nose,  rather  high  cheek  bones,  eyes  a 
light-gray ; his  hair  thin  and  silvery,  and  his  whole  demeanor  elevated  and 
dignified),  might  have  been  seen  standing  at  the  gate  of  the  Franciscan  Con- 
vent near  Palos,  in  Spain,  asking  for  a little  bread  and  water  for  his  pale- 
faced,  motherless  child,  whom  he  was  leading  by  the  hand.  It  was  CHRISTO- 
PHER Columbus,  then  in  extreme  poverty,  making  his  way,  with  his  boy 
Diego,  on  foot  for  the  Spanish  Court.  While  he  lay  sick  near  Belem,  a mys- 
terious voice  had  said  to  him  in  a dream  : “ God  will  cause  thy  name  to  be 
wonderfully  resounded  through  the  earth,  and  will  give  thee  the  keys  of  the 
gates  of  the  ocean  which  are  closed  with  strong  chains.”  It  was  a prophecy 
of  the  imagination — a sequence  of  intense  thought  and  weary  study  on  the 
subject.  To  the  mind  of  Columbus  it  had  all  the  reality  of  a revelation 
from  God. 

Columbus  was  the  son  of  a wool-comber  in  Genoa,  where  he  was  born 
about  the  year  1435.  Like  other  boys  with  busy  fancies  in  that  maritime 
city,  he  showed  a fondness  for  the  sea  at  an  early  age,  and  his  father,  though 
straitened  in  means,  sent  him,  for  a short  time,  to  the  University  of  Pavia 
to  study  the  sciences  which  might  fit  him  to  be  a navigator.  It  was  an  age 
of  rapid  intellectual  development.  Learning  was  leaving  the  monasteries  to 
take  up  its  abode  with  the  laity.  Geographical  discoveries  had  created  an 


Chap.  III. 


THE  ASPIRATIONS  OF  COLUMBUS. 


35 


intense  longing  for  geographical  knowledge,  and  the  writings  of  Pliny, 
Strabo  and  others,  which  the  newly-discovered  art  of  printing  soon  multi- 
plied, were  read  with  avidity. 

Columbus  became  a passionate  disciple  of  geographical  teachers.  He 
made  his  first  voyage  when  he  was  only  fourteen  years  of  age.  As  his  prac- 
tical knowledge  deepened  with  experience,  and  wonderful  tales  of  mariners 
concerning  mysterious  lands  seen  in  the  far-off  Atlantic  fell  upon  his  ears, 
his  soul  burned  with  an 
intense  desire  to  pene- 
trate the  unknown  waste 
of  waters.  There  was 
then  a popular  tradition 
that  there  was  a very 
large  island  in  the  At- 
lantic called  Antilla, 
mentioned  by  Aristotle, 
which  Carthagenian 
mariners  had  visited. 

There  was  also  a tradi- 
tion of  another  island,  on 
w'hich  St.  Brandon,  a 
Scotch  priest,  landed  in 
the  sixth  century,  and 
found  magnificent  cities. 

Still  another  spoke  of 
the  Island  of  Seven 
Cities,  on  which  seven 
Spanish  bishops,  who 
fled  from  Spain  with  an 
immense  number  of  fol- 
lowers, on  the  invasion 
of  the  Moors,  had  set- 
tled and  founded  seven 


COLUMBUS  AND  HIS  SON  AT  THE  CONVENT  GATE. 


grand  cities.  Even  the 

learned  geographer,  Martin  Behm,  whom  the  King  of  Portugal  employed, 
placed  these  islands  on  a globe  which  he  constructed  as  being  contigu- 
ous to  the  eastern  coast  of  Asia.  And  with  the  revival  of  letters,  came 
from  Greece  the  story  of  Atlantis,  which  Plato  had  learned  from  the  Egyp- 
tians and  told  to  his  countrymen — a story  which  gave  an  account  of  an 
immense  island  in  the  Atlantic,  in  early  times,  larger  than  Asia  and  Africa 


36 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  I 


together,  full  of  inhabitants,  great  cities  and  mighty  kingdoms,  which,  by 
tremendous  earthquakes,  had  been  shaken  from  their  foundations  and 
swallowed  by  the  sea.  These  traditions,  the  stories  of  the  people  of 
the  Canary  Islands  concerning  land  frequently  seen  westward  of  them  (a 
mirage?)  and  scores  of  other  marvelous  tales,  fired  the  imagination  of 
Columbus,  and  he  conceived  the  grand  design  of  attempting  the  discovery  of 
unknown  lands  in  the  West. 

Finding  very  little  encouragement  in  his  native  city,  and  Prince  Henry 
of  Portugal  being  then  engaged  in  his  explorations  of  the  western  coast  of 
Africa,  Columbus  went  to  Lisbon.  He  arrived  there  about  the  year  1470, 
when  he  was  in  the  prime  of  his  young  manhood.  There  he  was  a strict 
attendant  at  religious  services  in  the  chapel  of  the  Convent  of  All  Saints. 
In  that  convent  several  ladies  of  rank  boarded  or  resided.  Among  these  w'as 
Doila  Felipa,  daughter  of  Bartolomeo  de  Perestrello,  an  Italian  cavalier  then 
lately  dead,  who  had  been  one  of  Prince  Henry’s  most  noted  navigators. 
He  had  discovered,  colonized  and  governed  the  island  of  Porto  Santo,  one 
of  the  Madeiras.  Columbus  and  Dona  Felipa  became  acquainted.  The 
acquaintance  ripened  into  love  and  resulted  in  marriage. 

Columbus  and  his  bride  resided  with  her  mother  in  Porto  Santo. 
Madame  Perestrello  placed  in  the  hands  of  her  son-in-law  the  maps,  charts, 
journals  and  memoranda  of  her  late  husband.  They  opened  new  fields  for 
the  contemplation  of  the  navigator,  and  inspired  him  with  an  irrepressible 
desire  for  attempting  discoveries  in  the  W’est.  These  desires  were  stimu- 
lated by  facts  that  were  given  him  by  Pedro  Correo,  an  eminent  navigator, 
who  had  married  a sister  of  the  wife  of  Columbus.  He  told  him  of  timber 
handsomely  carved,  and  of  immense  canes  such  as  it  was  said  grew  in  India, 
that  had  been  found  floating  on  the  sea,  from  the  westward  ; also  of  the 
bodies  of  two  men  which  had  been  cast  ashore  on  one  of  the  islands  of  the 
Azores  by  a westerly  gale,  whose  faces  were  large  and  their  skins  a copper 
color.  These  things  confirmed  Columbus  in  a budding  belief  that  he  might 
reach  India  by  sailing  westward,  and  he  formed  plans  accordingly.  These 
he  communicated  to  the  eminent  Toscanelli,  of  Florence,  who  wrote  to  him 
an  encouraging  letter,  and  sent  him  a map  projected  partly  by  Ptolemy  and 
partly  from  descriptions  of  Marco  Polo,  a Venetian,  who  made  an  overland 
journey  to  China  late  in  the  thirteenth  century,  and  was  in  the  public 
employment  of  the  Great  Khan  or  Emperor  of  Tartary.  With  this  map 
before  him  Columbus  studied  the  narrative  of  Polo,  and  was  impressed  with 
the  belief  that  by  sailing  westward  he  would  find  the  rich  country  of  Cathay 
described  by  that  traveller  (now  known  to  be  China)  and  the  great  island  of 
Zipangi,  supposed  to  be  Japan.  These  were  the  subjects  of  his  dreams, 


Chap.  III. 


COLUMBUS  IN  PORTUGAL. 


37 


whilst  cruising  among  the  islands  in  American  waters,  many  years  after- 
ward. 

Columbus  made  voyages  in  the  service  of  the  Portuguese;  and  in  1477 
he  sailed  to  Iceland  and  beyond.  There  he  doubtless  heard  the  traditions 
concerning  the  voyages  of  the  sons  of  Eric  the  Red,  or  listened  to  rehearsals 
of  the  sagas  in  which  they  were  recorded.  On  his  return  he  was  filled  with 
zeal  for  undertaking  western  discoveries.  But  comparative  poverty  w'as  his 
portion.  He  was  not  able  to  fit  out  a ship,  so  he  appealed  to  the  King  of 
Portugal  for  assistance.  That  monarch  was  too  much  engrossed  in  a war 
with  Spain  to  listen  to  him.  He  w'aited  patiently  until  his  successor,  the 
young  John  the  Second,  ascended  the  throne.  John  was  endowed  with  the 
spirit  of  his  great  uncle.  Prince  Henry,  and  listened  to  Columbus  gladly. 
The  scheme  of  the  navigator  was  referred  to  a junta  composed  of  two  emi- 
nent cosmographers  or  describers  of  the  universe,  and  a learned  bishop. 
They  decided  that  his  project  was  extravagant  and  visionary. 

The  king  was  not  satisfied.  He  called  a council  of  learned  men,  who 
also  decided  against  the  project.  Still  the  king  was  not  satisfied  ; when  the 
bishop  (who  was  his  confessor)  proposed  to  him  a mean  stratagem.  It  was 
that  he  should  get  from  Columbus  his  plans,  charts,  proposed  directions  for 
sailing  and  all  other  necessary  Information,  under  the  pretext  that  he  cher- 
ished his  propositions.  Then  he  was  to  send  a caravel  (a  small  three-masted 
vessel)  to  the  Cape  de  Verd  islands  on  the  pretext  of  carrying  provisions 
there,  with  instructions  to  go  as  far  westw'ard  as  possible,  to  ascertain  if  there 
were  any  foundation  for  the  navigator’s  theory.  This  was  to  secure  advan- 
tages to  the  state  without  committing  it  to  w'hat  might  turn  out  to  be  a 
m?re  chimera.  The  king  permitted  himself  to  follow  the  advice  of  the 
bishop.  The  cowardly  crew  of  the  caravel  did  not  go  far,  before  they  were 
frightened  back  by  the  great  waves.  Columbus  discovered  the  infamous 
trick  to  defraud  him  of  the  honors  of  such  a discovery,  and  with  lofty  pride 
he  scorned  all  offers  of  the  monarch  to  renew  the  negotiations.  His  wife 
was  HOW  dead.  She  had  borne  him  a son,  whom  they  had  named  Diego. 
The  domestic  ties  which  bound  him  to  Portugal  were  broken,  and  turning 
his  back  upon  the  faithless  king  and  priest,  he  took  his  boy  and  secretly 
departed  from  Lisbon  late  in  the  year  1484.  Whither  he  went  then  nobody 
certainly  knows.  He  first  reappears  in  history  in  the  south  of  Spain,  stand- 
ing, in  the  twilight  of  a beautiful  October  day,  at  the  door  of  the  Franciscan 
monastery  near  Palos,  asking  for  a little  bread  and  water  for  his  famishing 
boy. 


CHAPTER  IV. 


COLUMBUS  AT  THE  CONVENT  OF  DE  RABIDA — ASKS  AID  OF  THE  SOVEREIGNS  OF  SPAIN — THE 
SPANISH  MONARCHY  AT  THAT  TIME — COLUMBUS  KEPT  IN  SUSPENSE — THE  COUNCIL  AT  SALA- 
MANCA— DELAYS  AND  DISAPPOINTMENTS — QUEEN  ISABELLA  RESOLVES  TO  FIT  OUT  VESSELS 
FOR  COLUMBUS — HE  IS  APPOINTED  ADMIRAL  AND  SAILS  FOR  PALOS — THE  VOYAGE  WESTWARD 
— DISCOVERS  AN  ISLAND  SUPPOSED  TO  BE  A PART  OF  THE  EAST  INDIES — LANDS,  TAKES  POS- 
SESSION, AND  CALLS  THE  NATIVE  INHABITANTS  INDIANS. 

IT  is  supposed  by  some  that  Columbus,  after  leaving  Portugal,  applied 
for  aid  to  the  Republic  of  Genoa.  If  he  did,  he  was  unsuccessful ; and 
so  we  find  him  at  the  gate  of  the  convent  near  Palos,  in  Andalusia, 
which  was  dedicated  to  Santa  Maria  de  Rabida.  Whilst  the  porter  was 
getting  refreshments  for  his  boy,  the  prior  of  the  convent,  P'riar  Juan  Perez 
de  Marchena,  happening  to  pass  by,  was  attracted  by  the  dignified  aspect  of 
the  stranger.  He  soon  learned  that  he  was  on  his  way  to  the  neighboring 
town,  Huelva,  to  seek  for  his  brother-in-law,  probably  Pedro  Correo,  already 
mentioned.  He  also  learned,  from  a brief  conversation,  that  the  stranger 
was  an  e.xtraordinary  man,  and  he  invited  Columbus  to  remain  as  his  guest. 
With  increasing  wonder  and  admiration  he  heard  the  lips  of  the  navigator 
unfold  his  theories,  his  plans  and  his  hopes.  That  such  a man  should  stand 
a beggar  at  his  convent  gate  was  a marvel  to  Father  Marchena. 

The  friar  was  learned  in  geographical  science.  Able,  therefore,  to  com- 
prehend the  grandeur  of  the  views  of  Columbus,  he  was  deeply  impressed 
with  the  wisdom  of  the  navigator,  which  seemed  to  him  like  inspiration. 
Distrusting  his  own  judgment,  he  sent  for  Garcia  Fernandez,  a scientific 
friend  in  Palos,  to  come  and  converse  with  his  guest ; and  within  the  quiet 
cloisters  of  La  Rabida,  the  project  of  Columbus  received  the  most  profound 
respect,  such  as  powerful  courts  and  learned  philosophers  in  council  had  not 
deigned  to  bestow.  There  he  was  brought  in  contact  with  old  and  eminent 
navigators  of  Palos,  whose  stories  of  the  sea  confirmed  his  faith  in  his  theory. 
Marchena,  impressed  with  the  same  faith,  and  the  importance  to  Spain  ol 
a successful  result  of  an  enterprise  like  that  proposed  by  Columbus,  not  only 
offered  to  give  him  a favorable  Introduction  to  the  court,  but  he  also  offered 
to  take  his  son  Diego  into  the  convent,  and  there  educate  him. 


Chap.  IV. 


THE  SPANISH  MONARCHY. 


39 


It  was  now  one  of  the  most  remarkable  and  brilliant  periods  in  the 
history  of  the  Spanish  monarchy.  Ferdinand,  King  of  Arragon,  and  Isabella, 
Queen  of  Castile  and  Leon,  had  been  joined  in  marriage.  Their  kingdoms 
were  united,  and  formed  a strong  empire.  So  was  consolidated  the  Christian 
power  of  the  Spanish  Peninsula,  and  gave  a prophecy  of  a speedy  conquest 
of  the  Moors  who  were  confined  to  Grenada,  the  kingdom  which  they  had 
set  up  on  Spanish  soil  more  than  two  hundred  years  before.  To  effect  that 
conquest,  the  efforts  of  united  Spain  were  now  directed.  The  two  monarchs 
were  one  in  love,  respect,  interest,  views  and  aims,  and  were  happily  united 
in  their  councils  for  the  good  of  the  realm,  yet  they  ruled  as  separate  sover- 
eigns, each  having  an  independent  council,  and  sometimes  holding  court 
and  exercising  sovereignty  at  widely  separate  points  at  the  same  time. 
They  were  wise  in  council  and  brave  in  action.  Sometimes  they  were  both 
in  the  field  at  the  head  of  troops  in  their  warfare  with  the  Moors ; and  the 
armor  worn  by  the  queen  on  these  occasions  may  be  seen  in  the  royal 
arsenal  at  Madrid.  The  monarchs  were  a unit,  however,  in  the  general 
administration  of  the  consolidated  kingdoms.  All  acts  of  sovereignty  were 
executed  in  the  names  of  both ; public  documents  were  signed  by  both ; 
their  profiles  were  stamped  together  on  the  national  coins,  and  the  royal  seal 
displayed  the  united  arms  of  Castile  and  Arragon.  They  were  both 
extremely  religious  and  were  warmly  attached  to  the  Church  of  Rome,  then 
at  the  height  of  its  temporal  power,  whose  head  claimed  to  be  “ King  of 
Kings.” 

It  was  an  inauspicious  time  for  Columbus  to  lay  his  projects  before  the 
monarchs.  The  court  was  moving  from  place  to  place,  and  was  continually 
surrounded  by  the  din  and  pageantry  of  war.  So  the  navigator  remained 
quietly  at  La  Rabida,  the  guest  of  Father  Marchena,  until  the  spring  of 
i486,  when  the  court  had  arrived  at  the  ancient  city  of  Cordova,  where  the 
troops  had  assembled  for  a vigorous  spring  campaign  against  the  common 
enemy.  To  that  old  city,  and  to  the  court  of  the  young  sovereigns,  Colum- 
bus repaired,  bearing  a letter  from  Marchena  to  the  friar’s  intimate  friend, 
Fernando  de  Talevera,  prior  of  the  monastery  of  Prado  and  confessor  to  the 
queen.  He  was  a man  high  in  the  royal  confidence,  and  possessed  great 
weight  in  public  affairs.  With  bright  hopes  Columbus  presented  the  letter. 
The  prior  read  it  carefully,  listened  patiently  to  the  explanations  of  the 
bearer,  and  coldly  shaking  his  head  in  token  of  his  doubts,  bade  the  disap- 
pointed mariner  good  morning.  He  was  not  favorably  impressed  with  the 
project  of  Columbus,  and  it  is  probable  that  he  did  not  even  mention  it  to 
the  sovereigns. 

For  a long  time  Columbus  lingered  in  Cordova.  He  went  no  more  to 
4 


40 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  I. 


the  priest,  but  found  a friend  and  an  advocate  o~  his  theory  in  Quintanillo, 
the  controller  of  the  finances  of  Castile.  That  officer  obtained  for  the  navi- 
gator the  friendly  aid  of  Mendoza,  Archbishop  of  Toledo  and  Grand  Cardinal 
of  Spain.  By  that  important  personage  he  found  admittance  to  the  royal 
presence.  The  sovereigns  listened  with  wonder  and  deep  interest  whilst  he 
unfolded  his  theory  and  gave  them  corroborating  facts.  The  prior  of  Prado 


THE  queen’s  confessor  AND  COLUMBUS. 


was  ordered  to  assemble  a council  of  astronomers  and  cosmographers  at 
Salamanca  to  confer  with  the  navigator.  There,  in  the  Convent  of  St. 
Stephen,  they  listened  to  his  theories  and  his  arguments.  These  were  con- 
futed by  the  books  of  Moses,  the  Psalms  of  David,  the  prophecies,  the 
Gospels  and  Epistles,  and  by  the  writings  of  the  early  fathers  of  the  Chris- 
tian Church.  Plain  reason  confounded  his  wild  notions.  “ If  the  earth  is 


Chap.  IV. 


DELAYS  AND  DISAPPOINTMENTS. 


41 


round,”  said  the  wise  men  of  that  council,  “ you  will  be  compelled  to  sail  up 
a kind  of  mountain  from  Spain,  which  you  cannot  do,  even  with  the  fairest 
wind,  and  you  could  never  get  back.”  The  Grand  Cardinal  of  Spain 
intimated  that  the  theories  of  Columbus  were  irreligious ; and  the  astonished 
navigator  was  really  in  danger  of  being  consigned  to  the  Inquisition,  which 
was  about  to  be  revived,  as  a heretic,  instead  of  receiving  aid  and  honor  as  a 
discoverer. 

Columbus  was  again  doomed  to  long  delay.  Disappointed,  wearied, 
almost  in  despair,  he  humbled  his  just  pride  and  wrote  a letter  to  the  King 
of  Portugal,  whose  overtures  he  had  rejected,  again  asking  aid.  That  mon- 
arch invited  him  to  Lisbon.  It  was  now  the  early  spring  of  1488.  Circum- 
stances had  just  then  revived  his  hopes  of  help  from  the  Spanish  monarchs, 
and  Columbus  did  not  go.  He  was  attached  to  Cordova,  for  there  Beatrix 
Enriquez  had  borne  him  a son  whom  he  named  Fernando,  and  who  became 
the  historian  of  his  father.  But  another  year  passed  away  before  he  was 
again  summoned  to  confer  with  scientific  men  at  Seville.  The  war  was  then 
at  its  height.  The  clangor  of  arms  disturbed  every  peaceful  occupation,  and 
the  conference  was  not  held. 

Another  year  passed  away  and  Columbus,  wearied  by  the  suspense, 
pressed  for  a decisive  answer  to  his  petition.  Another  council  of  wise  men 
decided  that  his  project  was  vain,  and  beneath  the  dignity  of  sovereigns  to 
engage  in.  Not  so,  secretly  thought  the  monarchs.  They  were  unwilling  to 
reject  his  suit  altogether,  and  they  sent  him  word  that  so  soon  as  the  war 
should  be  closed  they  would  treat  with  him  on  the  subject.  So  encouraged, 
Columbus  went  to  the  court  at  Seville,  but  saw  little  prospect  of  success 
there.  He  felt  impelled  to  seek  aid  at  other  European  courts,  but  he  did 
not  wish  to  leave  Spain.  Diego  was  at  La  Rabida,  and  Beatrix  and  his 
infant  son  Fernando  were  at  Cordova.  So  he  turned  from  the  monarchs  to 
the  rich  nobles  of  Spain.  But  he  found  no  one  among  them  willing  to 
embark  in  his  enterprise.  The  Duke  of  Medina  Celi,  to  whom  he  applied, 
advised  him  to  make  another  application  to  the  Spanish  monarchs,  and  gave 
him  a letter  to  the  queen. 

The  proud  spirit  of  Columbus  would  not  permit  him  to  again  wait  upon 
the  court  in  the  character  of  a suppliant.  He  had  received  an  invitation 
from  the  king  of  France  to  come  to  Paris,  and  he  resolved  to  go.  He  went 
to  the  convent  for  Diego,  to  place  him  with  Beatrix,  at  Cordova.  The  good 
father,  Marchena,  was  touched  with  tenderest  pity  when  he  saw  that  great 
man,  after  years  of  weary  waiting,  again  standing  at  his  gate  as  poor,  almost, 
as  when  he  first  stopped  at  that  portal  and  asked  food  for  his  famishing 
boy.  The  friar’s  patriotism  was  also  enkindled  when  he  heard  from  the  lips 


42 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


boOK  1. 


of  the  disappointed  navigator  that  he  was  about  to  leave  the  country  forever, 
for  he  wished  Spain  to  be  a sharer  with  Columbus  in  the  brilliant  honors 
which  would  be  acquired  by  the  great  discoveries  which  Marchena  believed 
he  would  soon  make.  He  summoned  his  scientific  friends  of  Palos  to  a 
council  for  consultation.  Among  them  came  Martin  Alonzo  Pinzon,  the 
head  of  a wealthy  family  df  navigators  there.  Pinzon  approved  the  project 
of  Columbus,  and  showed  his  faith  in  the  theory  by  offering  to  engage  in  a 
voyage  of  discovery,  with  his  person  and  his  purse,  and  to  pay  the  expenses 
of  another  application  to  the  court.  Columbus  was  willing  to  delay  his 
departure  for  France,  but  he  would  not  be  a suppliant  again  at  the  feet  of 
the  Spanish  monarchs.  So  the  warm-hearted  Father  Marchena  resolved  to 
seek  a personal  interview  with  Queen  Isabella.  He  had  once  been  her  con- 
fessor, and  he  knew  that  persons  of  his  sacred  order  found  easy  access  to 
the  presence  of  that  devout  woman. 

Isabella  was  then  at  the  military  city  of  Santa  F^.  Thither  Marchena 
sent  a letter  to  the  queen  by  an  eminent  navigator,  who,  within  a fortnight, 
brought  back  a note  from  her  majesty  summoning  the  friar  to  her  presence, 
and  giving  Columbus  the  assurance  that  he  might  confidently  expect  royal 
aid.  That  note  was  laid  before  the  little  junta  of  friends  at  the  convent, 
and  produced  much  joy.  Before  midnight  Marchena  had  saddled  his  mule 
and  departed  secretly  for  Santa  F^,  where  the  sovereigns  were  superintend- 
ing the  close  investment  of  the  capital  of  Granada.  An  audience  of  the 
queen  was  readily  obtained,  when  the  friar  pleaded  eloquently  in  behalf  of 
Columbus  and  Spain.  His  honest  zeal  and  earnest  eloquence  secured  Isa- 
bella’s favorable  attention.  Her  favorite,  the  Marchioness  of  Moya,  sec- 
onded Father  Marchena’s  pleading,  and  the  queen  requested  that  Columbus 
should  be  sent  to  her  again.  She  forwarded  money  to  him  wherewith  to 
purchase  clothes,  a mule  for  his  journey,  and  to  bear  his  traveling  expenses. 

With  renewed  hope  Columbus  journeyed  toward  the  camp  before  Gra- 
nada, where  he  arrived  in  time  to  see  the  Moors  surrender  to  the  Spanish 
power.  He  was  soon  admitted  to  the  presence  of  the  sovereigns.  “ What 
do  you  expect?”  asked  the  king.  “To  be  invested  with  the  title  and  privi- 
leges of  an  admiral  and  viceroy  over  all  the  countries  I may  discover,” 
Columbus  replied.  “ Also  one-tenth  of  all  the  gains  either  by  trade  or  con- 
quest,” he  added.  One  of  the  courtiers  said  : “ By  such  an  arrangement  you 
would  secure  the  honor  of  a command,  without  any  loss  in  case  of  failure.” 
Columbus  instantly  replied : “ I will  furnish  an  eighth  of  the  cost  provided  I 
may  enjoy  an  eighth  of  the  profits.”  His  terms  were  pronounced  to  be 
inadmissible.  Others  were  offered.  He  refused  to  compromise,  and  the 
conference  seemed  fruitless.  Columbus,  again  disappointed  and  heartil}*  dis- 


Chap.  IV. 


COLUMBUS  BEFORE  THE  MONARCHS. 


43 


gusted,  turned  with  a heavy  heart  from  the  royal  pavilion,  resolved  to  go 
immediately  to  France.  He  mounted  his  mule  and  started  for  La  Rabida. 
Some  powerful  persons  who  were  zealous  converts  to  his  theory,  learning  of 
his  departure,  deeply  deplored  the  event.  One  of  these  was  St.  Angel, 
receiver  of  the  ecclesiastical  revenues  of  Arragon.  He  obtained  an  imme- 
diate audience  of  the  monarchs,  and  ably  vindicated  the  judgment  of  Colum- 
bus. The  king  was  not  convinced  ; 
the  queen  was.  “ Our  treasury,” 
said  Ferdinand,  “has  been  too 
much  drained  by  the  war,  to  war- 
rant us  in  engaging  in  the  under- 
taking.” “ I will  undertake  the 
enterprise,”  said  Isabella,  “ for  my 
own  crown  of  Castile,  and,  if  neces- 
sary, I will  pledge  my  jewels  for 
the  money.”  St.  Angel  said,  with 
emphasis,  “ It  will  not  be  neces- 
sary.” 

A courier  was  sent  to  bring  Col- 
umbus back  to  the  presence  of  the 
queen.  He  was  two  leagues  away 
when  the  messenger  overtook  him 
at  the  bridge  of  Pinos.  The  often 
disappointed  mariner  hesitated. 

The  injunction,  “ Put  not  your 
trust  in  princes,”  was  deeply  im- 
pressed on  his  mind.  When  he 
was  assured  of  Isabella’s  earnest- 
ness, he  turned  back.  An  imme- 
diate audience  was  granted.  The 
queen  received  him  graciously. 

She  was  seated  in  a richly-cushioned  chair  by  the  side  of  her  husband,  whilst 
Columbus  stood  before  her  with  St.  Angel  at  his  right  hand.  He  was  then 
fifty-six  years  of  age;  the  queen  was  forty.  In  person  she  was  of  medium 
height,  and  exquisitely  formed.  Her  complexion  was  fair,  her  hair  a rich 
auburn  color,  and  her  eyes  a clear  blue.  There  was  a mingled  gravity  and 
sweetness  in  her  countenance  which  made  it  very  winning,  and  a singular 
modesty  which  graced  the  firmness  of  her  purposes,  her  earnestness  of  spirit, 
and  her  courage  to  do  right.  She  possessed  more  genius  and  grandeur  of 
soul  than  her  husband  ; and  could  far  better  than  he  comprehend  the  theory 


44 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Hook  1. 


of  Columbus,  and  estimate  the  mighty  results  of  his  success  should  he 
achieve  it. 

The  ambition  of  the  navigator  was  lofty  and  noble.  His  piety  was  heart- 
felt ; his  religious  convictions  were  deep  and  controlling,  and  his  zeal  was  fed 
by  an  earnest  desire  to  serve  God  and  benefit  mankind.  And  when,  with  a 
tongue  that  seemed  to  be  touched  with  the  flame  of  inspiration,  he  told  the 
queen  of  his  faith  and  hope, — a belief  that  he  was  ordained  of  God  to  bear 
the  Gospel  of  Jesus  to  the  heathen  of  unknown  lands,  and  a hope  that  he 
should  bring  back  to  her  the  glad  tidings  of  pagans  converted  to  the  true 
faith, — her  face  kindled  with  enthusiasm  and  beamed  with  angelic  benignity. 
And  when  he  spoke  of  giving  to  Spain  the  honors  and  emoluments  of  his 
anticipated  discoveries,  and  promised  to  devote  the  profits  of  the  enterprise 
to  efforts  for  the  recovery  of  the  Holy  Sepulchre  at  Jerusalem  from  the 
hands  of  the  Paynim,  the  beautiful  queen  was  transported  with  joy.  She 
arose  quickly  from  her  chair,  and  stretching  forth  her  clasped  hands,  spark- 
ling with  jewels,  and  with  her  soft  eyes  raised  toward  heaven,  she  fervently 
invoked  the  blessing  of  Almighty  God  upon  the  person  and  deeds  of  Colum- 
bus. The  navigator  stood  in  awe,  with  bowed  head,  before  the  seeming 
transfigured  sovereign.  The  colder  Ferdinand’s  soul  was  warmed,  and  to 
the  uttered  benediction  he  responded  “ Amen.” 

Isabella  assented  to  all  of  the  demands  of  Columbus,  and  urged  him  to 
depart  on  his  great  mission  as  speedily  as  possible.  P'erdinand  acquiesced 
in  the  arrangements.  The  contract  was  signed  by  the  sovereigns,  at  Santa 
F^,  on  the  17th  of  April,  1492.  On  the  30th  of  the  same  month,  his  com- 
mission of  admiral  and  viceroy  was  signed  by  both  of  them  in  the  city  of 
Granada.  By  that  instrument,  the  dignities  and  prerogatives  of  viceroy 
were  made  hereditary  in  the  family  of  Columbus,  and  his  heirs  were  entitled 
to  prefix  to  their  names  the  title  of  Don,  a token  of  rank  and  estate.  Early 
in  May  the  queen  appointed  Diego,  the  son  of  Columbus,  page  to  her 
majesty’s  son,  Prince  Juan  or  John.  Then  Columbus  departed  for  La 
Rabida  with  a light  heart,  and  was  there  received  by  the  good  Father  Mar- 
chena  with  open  arms. 

The  port  of  Palos  had  lately  sinned  against  the  monarchs,  and  the  citi- 
zens had  been  condemned  to  serve  the  crown  one  year  with  two  armed  cara- 
vels— small  three-masted  vessels.  Furnished  with  authority  from  the  mon- 
archs, Columbus  went  to  the  Church  of  St.  George,  in  Palos,  and  in  the 
porch  of  the  fane,  in  the  presence  of  the  public  officers  of  that  sea-port 
town  and  many  citizens,  he  caused  a royal  order  to  be  read  commanding  the 
authorities  to  have  two  caravels  ready  for  sea  within  ten  days,  and  they  and 
their  crews  placed  at  the  disposal  of  the  admiral.  By  the  same  order  he 


Chap.  IV. 


CONSTERNATION  AT  PALOS. 


45 


was  empowered  to  fit  out  a third  vessel ; and  the  people  of  that  portion  of 
the  Andalusian  coast  were  directed  to  furnish  supplies  for  the  three  ships  at 
fair  prices. 

When  the  destination  of  Columbus  was  made  known,  the  greatest  conster- 
nation spread  amongst  the  seamen  of  Palos  and  their  friends.  The  stories 
of  the  awful  terrors  of  the  far-western  Atlantic,  which  everybody  believed, 
made  the  stoutest  hearts  of  the  mariners  quail.  Many  of  them  fled  to  avoid 


QUEEN  ISABELLA  INVOKING  BLESSINGS. 


the  service,  and  for  weeks  no  progress  was  made  toward  the  equipment  of 
the  vessels.  Finally  Martin  Alonzo  Pinzon,  and  his  brother,  Vincent  Yanez, 
navigators  of  Palos,  of  great  wealth  and  well-known  courage  and  ability, 
having  ships  and  seamen  in  their  employ,  came  forward  and  not  only 
engaged  to  furnish  one  of  the  vessels,  but  to  go  themselves  with  Columbus 


46 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  I. 


on  the  perilous  voyage,  each  as  master  of  a ship  ; Martin  also  agreed  to 
furnish  Columbus  with  the  money  to  pay  his  promised  one-eighth  of  the 
cost.  These  acts  of  the  Pinzons  had  a powerful  effect  upon  the  people, 
soothing  their  fears  and  inspiring  them  with  confidence ; and  very  soon  three 
vessels — all  that  were  required — were  ready  for  sea.  Two  of  them  were  no 
larger  than  our  river  and  coast  sailing  vessels — without  decks,  pierced  for 
oars  to  be  used  in  calms,  with  each  a forecastle,  and  a cabin  in  the  high  stern 
for  the  accommodation  of  the  ship’s  company.  The  largest,  which  was  fitted 
expressly  for  the  expedition,  was  decked,  and  was  named  Santa  Maria  (or 
Holy  Mary).  She  was  the  flag-ship  of  Columbus.  One  of  the  caravels  was 
called  the  Pinta,  and  was  commanded  by  Martin  Alonzo  Pinzon,  who  was 
accompanied  by  his  brother,  Francisco  Martin,  as  pilot.  The  other  caravel 
was  the  Nina,  with  lateen  sails,  and  was  commanded  by  Vincent  Yanez 
Pinzon.  There  were  three  other  pilots ; an  inspector-general  of  the  arma- 
ment ; also  a native  of  Cordova,  Diego  de  Avan  a,  as  chief  alguazil,  an  officer 
corresponding  in  his  functions  with  our  constable.  Roderigo  de  Escobar 
was  with  Columbus  as  royal  notary,  an  officer  always  sent  with  the  arma- 
ments of  the  crown,  as  historian  of  the  expedition.  There  were  also  a phy- 
sician and  surgeon,  some  private  adventurers,  servants,  and  ninety  mariners; 
in  all  one  hundred  and  twenty  persons.  After  appropriate  religious  cere- 
monies in  the  Church  of  St.  George  in  Palos  had  been  performed,  the 
expedition  sailed  on  Friday  the  3d  of  August,  1492.  On  the  9th,  the  little 
flotilla  reached  the  Canary  Islands,  where  they  were  detained  more  than 
three  weeks,  and  early  in  September  they  passed  the  westernmost  of  the 
group,  escaped  some  Portuguese  caravels  which  had  been  sent  out  to  inter- 
cept them,  and  sailed  boldly  toward  the  unknown.  Columbus  carried  with 
him  charts  constructed  on  the  basis  of  that  which  Toscanelli  had  formerly 
sent  to  him.  Expecting  to  find  the  eastern  coast  of  Asia,  he  also  bore  a 
letter  from  the  Spanish  sovereigns  to  the  Grand  Khan  (Emperor)  of  Tartary, 
in  whose  service  Marco  Polo  had  been  employed  two  hundred  years  before. 

With  wonderful  endurance  the  three  little  vessels  buffeted  with  the  waves 
of  the  Atlantic.  They  encountered  no  heavy  storms  such  as  sometimes 
lash  that  sea  into  fury ; nor  did  they  observe  any  of  the  expected  terrors  of 
the  trackless  deep.  Phenomena  sometimes  startled  the  mariners,  and  day 
after  day  they  were  agitated  by  alternate  hopes  and  disappointments.  The 
volcanic  blaze  of  the  peak  of  Teneriffe  scared  the  sailors  as  it  shot  up  behind 
them.  When  they  were  two  hundred  leagues  or  more  westward  of  that 
peak,  Columbus  observed,  for  the  first  time  in  his  life,  a variation  of  the 
needle  of  his  compass  from  a true  line  with  the  north  star.  It  inclined  five 
or  six  degrees  to  the  northwest,  and  this  variation  increased  as  they  sailed 


Chap.  IV. 


INDICATIONS  OF  LAND  NEAR. 


47 


on  with  no  sure  guide  but  the  stars.  Very  soon  they  encountered  vast 
masses  of  sea-weeds,  which  retarded  the  vessels,  and  seemed  like  a green 
island  hundreds  of  miles  in  extent  floating  on  the  bosom  of  the  ocean.  It 
was  doubtless  the  mysterious  Sargasso  Sea,  now  so  well  known  to  mariners, 
and  which  probably  gave  rise  to  the  legends  concerning  fertile  islands  in  the 
Atlantic.  Then  they  were  cheered  by  the  sight  of  a flying  heron  and  a 
tropical  bird  which  were  harbingers  of  land.  The  sailors,  who  had  been 
mutinous  at  times,  were  quieted  by  these  promises  of  nature ; but  when 
they  seemed  to  be  deceptive,  the  crews  again  became  stormy  and  almost 
ungovernable.  They  reproached  their  sovereigns  for  trusting  the  ambitious 
Italian,  who  would  sacrifice  their  lives  “ to  make  himself  a great  lord  and 
they  resolved  to  retrace  their  course  and  seek  the  shores  of  Spain.  With 
kind  words,  tempting  promises  of  reward,  and  threats  against  the  more 
mutinous,  Columbus  quelled  the  rising  insurrection  for  the  time. 

For  eleven  days  after  leaving  the  Canary  Islands,  the  ships  had  sailed 
before  the  easterly  trade  winds ; now  gentle  breezes  came  from  the  south- 
west, and  often  diminished  into  dead  calms.  At  early  twilight  one  evening, 
Martin  Pinzon,  standing  on  the  high  stem  of  the  Pinta,  and  pointing  toward 
the  southwest,  shouted  to  the  admiral,  “ Land ! land  ! sefior ; I claim  my 
reward  ” — a pension  promised  by  the  sovereigns  to  the  first  man  who  should 
discover  land.  Believing  the  report  to  be  true,  Columbus  knelt  and  returned 
thanks  to  God ; and  his  own  crew  and  that  of  the  Pinta,  sailing  close  by, 
joined  with  the  commanders  in  repeating  the  Gloria  in  Excclsis.  Alas ! the 
apparition  was  only  a cloud  which  vanished  before  the  dawn. 

Days  passed  on,  and  the  sun  each  evening  set  in  the  waves.  Martin 
Pinzon  believed  that  a more  southerly  course  would  be  wiser,  and  he  was 
confirmed  in  his  opinion  by  seeing  a flock  of  parrots  flying  toward  the  south- 
west. He  advised  Columbus  to  follow  them,  but  the  admiral  kept  on  his 
due  west  course.  The  crews  again  became  discontented  and  mutinous. 
They  had  lost  all  hope,  and  in  their  desperation  they  defied  Columbus. 
With  great  dignity  and  calmness,  and  with  the  coolness  of  true  courage,  he 
said : “ This  expedition  has  been  sent  out  by  your  sovereigns,  and  come 
what  may  I am  determined,  by  the  help  of  God,  to  accomplish  the  object  of 
the  voyage.”  “ We  will  cast  you  into  the  sea  and  return  to  Spain,”  said  the 
exasperated  sailors;  and  just  at  sunset,  on  the  evening  of  the  iith  of  Octo- 
ber, they  were  about  to  carry  their  threat  into  execution,  when  a coast-fish 
was  seen  to  glide  by ; dolphins  played  near  the  surface ; a branch  of  thorn 
with  berries  on  it  floated  near,  and  a staff,  artificially  carved,  came  upon  the 
waters  to  testify  of  human  habitations  near.  Such  unmistakable  signs  of 
land  close  by  hushed  the  voice  of  rebeUion,  and  the  tigers  became  as  meek 


48 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  1. 


as  lambs.  After  the  vesper  hymn  to  the  Virgin  had  been  sung  at  the  close 
of  twilight,  as  usual,  Columbus  addressed  his  crew  in  words  of  kindness  and 
congratulation.  Recounting  the  many  blessings  which  they  had  received 
from  God  on  the  voyage,  he  assured  them  that  a greater  blessing  was  about 
to  be  bestowed  upon  them — that  probably  land  would  be  seen  in  the  morn- 
ing. He  enjoined  them  all  to  watch,  and  promised  that  to  whosoever  should 
first  discover  land  should  be  given  a doublet  of  velvet,  in  addition  to  the 
pension  offered  by  the  sovereigns. 


COLUMBUS  AND  HIS  MUTINOUS  CREW. 


Not  an  eye  was  closed.  Eagerly  every  man  watched  far  into  the  night. 
Columbus,  sitting  on  the  high  poop  of  the  Santa  Maria,  more  eagerly  than 
they,  gazed  upon  the  western  horizon.  At  about  ten  o’clock  he  thought  he 
saw  the  glimmer  of  a distant  light.  He  called  Gutierrez,  gentleman  of  the 
king’s  bed-chamber,  who  was  one  of  the  private  adventurers,  and  inquired 
whether  he  saw  a light.  “ I do,”  said  Gutierrez.  Columbus  then  called  San- 
chez, another  adventurer,  and  after  a few  minutes  they  all  three  saw  it,  gleam- 
ing like  a torch  in  a fisherman’s  boat,  rising  and  falling  with  the  waves.  At 


Chap.  IV. 


LANDING  OF  COLUMBUS. 


49 


length,  at  two  o’clock  in  the  morning,  whilst  the  vessels  were  continuing  on 
their  course,  a gun  fired  on  board  the  Pinta  announced  the  joyful  tidings 
that  land  had  been  seen.  It  was  first  observed  by  a mariner  named  Rodrigo 
de  Triana,  but,  as  Columbus  had  seen  the  lights  several  hours  before,  the 
award  was  given  to  the  admiral.  The  land  was  clearly  seen  at  a distance  of 
about  six  miles.  The  vessels  were  laid  to,  and  all  waited  impatiently  for  the 
dawn.  When  it  came  a beautiful  picture  was  revealed.  Wooded  shores 
A'ere  in  full  view.  The  perfumes  of  flowers  came  upon  the  light  land  breeze. 
Birds  in  gorgeous  plumage  hovered  around  the  vessels  caroling  morning 
hymns,  which  seemed  like  the  voices  of  angels  to  the  late  despairing  seamen. 
In  spite  of  every  difficulty  and  danger,  Columbus  had  accomplished  his 
object.  “The  great  mystery  of  the  ocean  was  revealed,”  says  Mr.  Irving. 
“ His  theory,  which  had  been  the  scoff  of  sages,  was  triumphantly  estab- 
lished ; he  had  secured  to  himself  a glory  as  durable  as  the  world  itself.” 

At  sunrise,  Columbus  and  his  companions  landed  in  small  boats.  Many 
naked  men  and  one  woman,  with  skins  of  a dark  copper  color,  who  had 
watched  the  movements  of  the  Europeans  Avith  mingled  feelings  of  curiosity, 
wonder  and  awe,  now  fled  in  alarm  to  the  deep  shadows  of  the  forest.  The 
admiral,  dressed  in  gold-embroidered  scarlet  cloth  and  bearing  the  royal 
standard,  first  stepped  upon  the  shore.  He  was  followed  by  the  Pinzons, 

each  carrying  the  white  silk  banner  of  the  expedition.  It  was  pennon- 

shaped, emblazoned  with  a green  cross,  on  one  side  of  which  was  the  letter 
F and  on  the  other  side  the  letter  Y,  the  initials  of  Ferdinand  and  Ysabella, 
and  each  was  surmounted  by  a golden  crown.  When  the  officers  and  crews 
were  all  landed,  the  whole  company  knelt,  kissed  the  earth,  and  with  tears 
of  joy  filling  their  eyes,  chanted  the  Tc  Deum  Laudamus.  Rising  from  the 
ground,  Columbus  displayed  the  royal  standard,  and  drawing  his  sword,  took 
possession  of  the  land  in  the  name  of  the  sovereigns  of  Spain.  To  the 

island  (for  such  it  proved  to  be)  he  gave  the  name  of  San  Salvador — Holy 

Saviour.  His  followers  crowded  around  him  with  the  most  extravagant 
demonstrations  of  delight.  Those  who  had  been  most  insolent  and  mutinous 
were  foremost  in  the  utterance  of  vows  of  faithfulness  thereafter.  Each 
gladly  took  an  oath  of  obedience  to  him  as  admiral  and  viceroy,  and  the 
representative  of  Ferdinand  and  Isabella.  Now  the  triumph  of  Columbus 
was  complete. 

The  native  inhabitants  had  watched  the  approaching  ships  since  the 
dawn,  with  fear  and  awe,  regarding  them  as  monsters  of  the  deep ; and  when 
they  saw  the  Avhite  men  come  from  them,  dressed  in  gay  colors,  with  shining 
lace  and  glittering  armor,  they  supposed  them  to  be  superior  beings  who  had 
come  down  from  the  skies.  Each  party  was  a wonder  to  the  other.  The 


50 


OUR  COUNTRV. 


Hook  1. 


naked  people  with  dusky  skins  painted  with  a variety  of  colors  and 
devices,  the  men  without  beards  and  both  sexes  having  long  black  hair  fall- 
ing from  their  heads  over  their  shoulders  and  bosoms  in  great  profusion, 
were  unlike  any  human  beings  of  whom  Columbus  and  his  companions  had 
ever  heard.  By  degrees  the  alarm  of  the  timid  natives  subsided,  and  they 
approached  the  Europeans  giving  and  receiving  signs  of  amity  and  good 
will.  As  the  boats  of  the  navigators  moved  along  the  shore,  in  an  explora- 
tion of  the  coast  of  the  island,  the  inhabitants  of  villages,  men,  women  and 
children,  ran  to  the  beach,  throwing  themselves  on  the  ground,  and  assuming 
attitudes  of  worship  of  the  supposed  celestial  beings.  They  made  signs  for 
the  Spaniards  to  land  ; and  when  they  found  that  the  boats  kept  on  their 
way,  many  of  them  went  into  the  sea  and  swam  after  them,  and  others  fol- 
lowed in  canoes.  Believing  that  he  was  upon  an  island  of  Farther  India, 
Columbus  called  these  wild  inhabitants  Indians,  a name  which  all  the  native 
tribes  of  America  have  since  borne. 


THE  LANDING  OF  COLUMBUS. 


CHAPTER  V. 


COLUMBUS  DISCOVERS  CUBA  AND  SAN  DOMINGO — LEAVES  A COLONY  ON  SAN  DOMINGO — THEIR 
CONDUCT  THERE — COLUMBUS  RETURNS  TO  SPAIN — UNRIGHTEOUS  AMBITION  OF  PINZON  DE- 
FEATED— COLUMBUS  INVITED  TO  THE  COURT— HIS  BRILLIANT  RECEPTION  AT  BARCELONA — 
HIS  AUDIENCE  WITH  THE  SOVEREIGNS — COLUMBUS  AT  THE  FEAST  GIVEN  BY  CARDINAL  MEN- 
DOZA— HE  MAKES  OTHER  VOYAGES  AND  DISCOVERS  SOUTH  AMERICA  — HE  IS  FALSELY  ACCUSED 
AND  SENT  FROM  SAN  DOMINGO  TO  SPAIN  IN  CHAINS — INDIGNATION  OF  ISABELLA — INGRATI- 
TUDE AND  INJUSTICE  OF  FERDINAND — COLUMBUS  DIES  IN  POVERTY  AND  NEGLECTED — HIS 
REMAINS — A MONUMENT  TO  HIS  MEMORY  IN  GENOA. 

The  native  name  of  the  island  whereon  Columbus  landed  was  Guan- 
hana.  To  the  Spaniards  and  others  it  is  yet  San  Salvador;  but  the 
English  having  given  it  the  vulgar  name  of  Cat  Island,  persist  in 
calling  it  so.  It  lies  about  two  hundred  and  fifty  miles  E.S.E.  of  the  south- 
ern point  of  the  peninsula  of  Florida,  and  is  one  of  the  larger  of  the  Bahama 
group.  After  examining  it,  the  admiral  cruised  among  others  of  the  same 
group,  naming  some  of  them.  He  also  touched  at  outlying  islands  as  he 
sailed  southward,  and  on  the  28th  of  October  he  saw  the  northern  shores  of 
Cuba.  Entering  a beautiful  river,  which  he  called  San  Salvador,  he  an- 
chored, and  in  honor  of  Prince  Juan  (John),  the  son  of  Isabella,  he  named 
the  great  island  Juana.  But  it  has  retained  its  native  name  of  Cuba.  He 
sailed  northwesterly  along  its  coast  as  far  as  the  eastern  entrance  to  Laguna 
de  Moron,  which  was  the  nearest  approach  to  the  North  American  continent 
ever  vouchsafed  to  Columbus.  There  he  first  saw  a weed,  the  leaves  of 
which  the  natives  rolled  into  long  slim  packages,  called  tobacco,  and  smoked. 
It  was  the  modern  cigar.  The  Spaniards  considered  the  habit  a nauseous 
indulgence,  and  did  not  adopt  it.  They  left  to  an  Englishman,  born  fifty 
years  afterward,  the  fame  of  introducing  this  use  of  tobacco  to  Europeans. 

Columbus  persuaded  several  of  the  native  inhabitants  of  Cuba,  of  both 
sexes,  to  go  with  him  to  Spain,  and  at  the  middle  of  November  he  sailed  in 
that  direction.  Head  winds  and  rough  weather  caused  him  to  return  to 
Cuba.  He  signalled  for  the  Pinzons  to  follow  him.  Martin  Alonzo  did  not 
heed  the  order,  and  very  soon  the  Pinta  disappeared  on  the  eastern  horizon. 

Early  in  December,  Columbus  saw  the  eastern  end  of  Cuba,  and  a few 
days  later,  as  he  sailed  toward  Europe,  the  charming  vision  of  beautiful 


52 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  1. 


Hayti,  now  St.  or  San  Domingo,  burst  upon  his  sight.  The  country  so  much 
resembled  Spain  in  its  natural  features,  that  he  named  it  Hispaniola — Little 
Spain.  On  its  shores  he  lingered  with  delight  many  days.  He  received  an 
invitation  from  one  of  the  leading  caciques  or  native  rulers  to  anchor  his 
vessels  near  his  residence,  and  whilst  sailing  along  the  coast  for  the  purpose 
of  casting  anchor  in  the  harbor  of  the  friendly  chief,  the  Santa  Maria  was 
wrecked  late  on  Christmas  eve,  in  consequence  of  bad  steering.  Columbus 
and  his  crew  took  refuge  on  board  the  caravel  Nina,  commanded  by  Vincent 
Pinzon,  where  a matin  hymn  to  the  Virgin  was  chanted  by  the  admiral  and 
his  followers  in  the  morning  twilight,  and  utterances  of  thanksgiving  went 
up  to  God  for  their  deliverance  from  great  peril  on  that  holy  festival  of  the 
church.  When  the  cacique  heard  of  the  disaster,  he  sent  men  and  canoes 
in  abundance  to  unload  the  vessel.  It  was  soon  done  with  willing  hands,  for 
a truly  Christian  spirit  animated  these  pagans.  “ So  loving,  and  tractable, 
and  peaceable  are  these  people,”  Columbus  wrote  to  Ferdinand  and  Isabella 
from  Hispaniola  afterward,  “that  I declare  to  your  majesties  that  there  is 
not  in  this  world  a better  nation  or  a better  land.  They  love  their  neigh- 
bors as  themselves.  Their  discourse  is  ever  sweet  and  gentle,  and  accom- 
panied with  a smile.” 

Satan  had  entered  that  paradise.  Many  of  the  followers  of  Columbus 
asked  permission  to  remain  on  the  island.  The  Nina  was  crowded  ; and, 
delighted  with  the  idea  of  planting  the  germ  of  a Christian  colony  there,  the 
admiral  gave  his  consent.  Of  the  wreck  of  the  vessel  they  built  a fort, 
which  Columbus  named  La  Navidad — the  Nativity,  in  commemoration  of 
their  having  escaped  shipwreck  on  Christmas  day.  A fort ! What  need  had 
they  of  a fort  among  such  a people  ? Alas ! it  was  a sign  of  premeditated 
wickedness.  Thirty-nine  remained.  Arana,  the  alguazil,  was  placed  in 
command  of  them,  and  they  were  conjured  by  Columbus  to  act  honestly 
and  live  united  in  good-fellowship.  As  soon  as  the  admiral  had  departed, 
they  broke  every  promise.  Each,  bent  upon  private  gain  and  incited  by  a 
desire  and  expectation  of  acquiring  great  wealth  in  a short  time,  broke  from 
the  social  tie  and  acted  independently.  The  gentle  natives  were  compelled 
to  yield  to  their  avarice  and  lust.  The  golden  ornaments  of  the  women 
were  seized,  and  two  or  three  of  them  were  made  wives  by  each  of  the 
Spaniards.  Robbery  and  licentiousness  marked  every  step  in  the  career  of 
these  Europeans.  They  went  to  different  parts  of  the  island  in  search  of 
reported  treasures,  and  soon  found  an  incarnation  of  retributive  justice  in 
the  person  of  a fierce  Carib  chief  who  ruled  much  of  Hayti,  and  who  slew 
the  Spaniards  and  burnt  their  fortress  to  ashes.  These  acts  of  the  intruders 
were  only  the  beginnings  of  similar  performances,  as  the  Spaniards  colonized 


Chap.  V. 


CRUEL  TREATMENT  OF  THE  HAYTIANS. 


^ ") 

the  West  India  Islands,  and  especially  Hayti.  These  savage  Christians 
made  that  Pagan  Eden  a wilderness  and  a land  of  unutterable  woes,  for  the 
real  Christian  kindness  of  the  so-called  savages  was  requited  by  the  most 
barbarous  cruelty.  Thousands  of  men,  women,  and  children  perished  under 
the  hardships  imposed  upon  them  as  slave-workers  in  the  fields  and  in 
mines,  and  many  were  made  abject  beasts  of  burden  for  the  gain  of  their 
white  conquerors. 

Early  in  January,  1493,  Columbus  left  La  Navidad,  in  the  Nina,  and 
sailed  for  Spain.  He  soon  saw  the  Pint  a.  The  avaricious  Pinzon  had  heard 


CRUELTY  OF  THE  SPANIARDS  IN  SAN  DOMINGO. 


of  a region  of  gold,  from  one  of  the  natives,  and  with  a desire  to  secure  the 
treasure  for  himself  he  had  deserted  the  admiral.  He  had  returned  to  His- 
paniola, and  there  heard  of  the  shipwreck  of  the  Santa  Maria,  but  he  did 
not  go  to  the  assistance  of  Columbus  because  it  might  interfere  with  his 
own  selfish  projects.  The  admiral  would  have  cruised  longer  among  the 
islands,  but  this  conduct  of  Pinzon,  and  the  fact  that  the  latter  had  kid- 
napped four  men  and  two  girls  for  the  purpose  of  selling  them  as  slaves  in 
Spain,  had  destroyed  his  confidence  in  that  commander,  and  he  determined 
to  hurry  home  and  rid  himself  of  so  undesirable  a companion.  The  Nina’s 
prow  was  turned  toward  Europe,  and  the  Pinta  followed. 


54 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  1. 


The  caravels  encountered  dead  calms  and  fierce  tempests  on  that  winter 
voyage,  and  were  separated.  In  one  of  these  storms,  Columbus,  fearing  the 
destruction  of  the  vessels  and  with  them  the  loss  of  all  knowledge  of  his 
discoveries,  placed  a written  narrative  of  his  adventures  in  a sealed  cask,  and 
committed  it  to  the  waves.  The  sailors,  in  affright,  vowed  that  they  would, 
if  spared,  attend  mass  in  their  shirts  only  at  the  first  Christian  church  they 
should  come  to.  That  vow  they  performed  at  the  Azores,  which  they 
reached  in  February.  They  were  all  saved.  At  dawn  on  the  4th  of  March, 
about  eight  weeks  after  she  had  left  La  Navidad,  the  Niiia  appeared  off  the 
rock  of  Cintra  at  the  mouth  of  the  Tagus,  in  Portugal,  and  soon  afterwards 
she  was  anchored  in  the  waters  of  that  river. 

Columbus  immediately  sent  a courier  with  a letter  to  Ferdinand  and 
Isabella,  in  which  he  announced  his  great  discovery.  He  also  wrote  a letter 
to  John,  King  of  Portugal,  who  was  then  at  Valparaiso.  That  monarch 
sent  a cavalier  to  Columbus  with  his  congratulations  and  an  invitation  for 
the  admiral  to  come  to  his  court.  Columbus  went  and  was  treated  with  dis- 
tinguished attentions.  A numerous  train  of  cavaliers  escorted  him  back  to 
his  ship.  He  stopped  at  a monastery  on  the  way  to  visit  John’s  queen,  who 
had  expressed  a strong  desire  to  see  the  great  discoverer ; and  on  the  1 3th 
of  March  he  again  put  to  sea.  Two  days  later,  at  noon,  the  Nina  entered 
the  harbor  of  Palos,  where  the  admiral  was  received  with  the  greatest 
demonstrations  of  joy.  It  was  then  seven  months  and  twelve  days  since  he 
left  that  harbor  for  the  regions  of  the  unknown,  and  out  of  those  mysterious 
regions  he  had  brought  the  wonderful  tidings  of  a new-found  world. 

On  the  evening  of  the  .same  day,  the  Pinta  sailed  into  the  harbor  of 
Palos.  Martin  Alonzo  Pinzon,  her  commander,  after  she  had  been  driven 
into  the  Bay  of  Biscay  by  a storm,  had  entered  the  port  of  Bayonne,  and 
from  thence  had  sent  a letter  to  Ferdinand  and  Isabella  recounting  his 
adventures  and  the  discoveries,  hoping  to  gain  for  himself  the  prepossessions 
of  the  Spanish  court.  He  also  expected  to  be  hailed  at  Palos  with  great 
acclamations,  and  to  receive  royal  honors  from  his  sovereigns,  for  he  sup- 
posed Columbus  was  yet  fighting  the  waves  of  the  Atlantic,  or  was  engulfed 
in  their  bosom.  When,  therefore,  he  saw  the  flag  of  the  Nina  fluttering  in 
the  breeze  at  Palos,  and  heard  the  praises  of  him  whom  he  chose  to  regard 
as  his  rival,  Pinzon,  jealous,  and  fearing  the  admiral  as  his  accuser,  sought 
seclusion  until  the  discoverer  had  left  the  port.  And  when  an  answer  to  his 
letter  was  received  from  the  monarchs  filled  with  reproaches,  and  forbidding 
him  to  appear  at  court,  his  “ heart  died  within  him.”  Killed  by  disap- 
pointed ambition  and  mortified  pride,  the  body  of  Martin  Alonzo  Pinzon 
was  laid  in  the  grave  a few  days  after  the  reading  of  the  royal  epistle. 


Chap.  V. 


RECEPTION  OF  COLUMBUS  AT  BARCELONA. 


55 


Columbus  hastened  to  Seville,  where  he  received  a letter  from  the  mon- 
archs  expressing  their  delight  because  of  his  great  achievements,  and  inviting 
him  to  repair  immediately  to  their  court  at  Barcelona.  The  letter  was 
addressed  to  “ Don  Christopher  Columbus,  our  admiral  of  the  ocean  sea, 
and  viceroy  and  governor  of  the  islands  discovered  in  the  Indies.”  To  their 
presence  the  honored  Italian  hastened,  taking  with  him  six  of  the  Indians 
whom  he  had  brought  from  Cuba — four  young  men  and  two  beautiful 
maidens.  Great  preparations  had  been  made  for  his  reception,  for  his  dis- 
coveries and  the  recent  conquest  of  the  Moors  were  regarded  by  the  sove- 
reigns as  special  indications  of  the  favor  of  God.  A procession  was  formed 
on  a brilliant  April  day  (such  as  may  be  seen  only  in  Catalonia),  composed 
of  priests,  nobles,  and  military  men.  In  that  procession,  among  the 
hidalgos,  rode  the  admiral,  richly  dressed,  the  cynosure  of  every  eye,  pre- 
ceded by  music,  soldiers,  and  brilliantly  dressed  Catalonian  guards,  and  fol- 
lowed by  the  dusky  natives  of  the  West  Indies.  The  latter  wore  hand- 
somely embroidered  white  tunics,  with  jewelled  bands  around  their  heads 
bearing  lofty  plumes  of  gay  colors,  and  golden  circlets  around  their  bare 
arms  and  legs.  They  carried  birds  of  strange  and  brilliant  plumage  from 
the  tropical  islands.  After  them  came  the  crews  of  the  vessels  of  the  expe- 
dition, carrying  a crown  of  gold  sent  by  the  friendly  cacique  of  Hispaniola, 
and  many  curious  things,  such  as  images  of  stone  rudely  wrought ; a masque 
with  eyes  of  gold  ; a living  alligator ; palm  branches  with  the  fruit  dried  on 
them ; reed  arrows  winged  with  beautiful  feathers,  and  a hundred  other 
strange  objects  from  those  far-off  lands.  Over  these  waved  the  Green  Cross 
banner  which  had  floated  over  those  mysterious  islands  of  the  sea ; also  the 
modest  white  banner  of  the  admiral,  bearing  the  arms  which  had  been 
granted  to  him,  namely,  those  of  the  Spanish  kingdom  quartered  by  a group 
of  islands  surrounded  by  billows,  and  inscribed  with  the  words,  in  golden 
letters, 

PoR  Castilla  y for  Leon 

Nuevo  Mundo  Hallo  Colon: 

“ For  Castile  and  for  Leon,  Columbus  has  discovered  a New  World.” 

In  a vast  hall  open  to  public  view  and  access,  two  thrones  had  been 
erected  under  a rich  canopy  of  brocade,  and  near  them  waved  thirty  Moorish 
banners  captured  at  Granada  and  Malaga,  trophies  of  the  recent  conquest. 
Seated  upon  these  thrones,  Ferdinand  and  Isabella  waited  the  arrival  of  the 
discoverer.  He  entered  among  a crowd  of  brilliant  Spanish  knights,  his 
tall  and  erect  figure,  his  flowing  gray  hair  and  beard,  his  lofty  bearing,  his 
benignant  aspect  and  his  great  deeds  making  him  appear,  as  he  really  was, 
the  noblest  champion  of  them  all.  The  sovereigns  arose  to  receive  him, 

5 


56 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  I. 


when  a murmur  of  applause  burst  from  the  lips  of  the  haughty  grandees 
present.  The  admiral  knelt  before  the  monarchs,  when  the  queen  bade  him 
rise.  He  then  asked  permission  to  kiss  the  hands  of  Ferdinand  and  Isa- 
bella, who,  after  God,  had  most  favored  him.  The  boon  was  granted,  when 
the  admiral  took  his  seat  among  the  nobles,  and  with  a clear  and  steady 
voice  he  recounted  the  chief  incidents  of  his  voyage,  exhibited  gold  and 
spices,  and  other  productions  of  the  country  he  had  discovered,  and  then 
declared  that  all  this  was  but  the  foreshadowing  of  greater  marvels  to  be 
revealed.  His  words  were  listened  to  with  the  most  profound  interest  and 
emotion.  When  they  had  ceased,  the  monarchs  cast  themselves  upon  their 
knees,  and  with  tears  coursing  down  their  cheeks  they  fervently  thanked 
God  for  so  great  a blessing.  The  whole  multitude  followed  their  devout 
example.  As  they  arose  to  their  feet,  the  choir  of  the  royal  chapel  chanted 
the  Te  Dcum.  Every  voice  in  the  great  hall  took  up  the  words  of  that 
glorious  hymn  of  praise,  “ and  it  seemed,”  says  Las  Casas,  “ as  if,  in  that 
hour,  they  communicated  with  celestial  delights.”  The  company  were  dis- 
missed with  the  apostolic  benediction  by  the  Grand  Cardinal  of  Spain,  and 
the  streets  of  Barcelona  echoed  and  re-echoed  with  shouts  of  joy. 

That  Grand  Cardinal  of  Spain,  Gonzales  de  Mendoza,  Archbishop  of 
Toledo,  who  had  hinted  to  a council  that  the  theory  of  Columbus  was 
irreligious,  was  now  among  the  first,  after  the  monarchs,  to  honor  him.  He 
invited  the  admiral  to  a feast,  at  which  were  gathered  some  of  the  -highest 
prelates  and  nobles  of  Catalonia.  To  the  navigator  he  gave  the  seat  of 
honor  at  the  table,  and  other  marks  of  superior  distinction.  These  atten- 
tions to  one  who  was  so  lately  a poor  Italian  mariner  excited  the  envy  of 
some  of  the  guests.  A courtier  present,  moved  by  a narrow  feeling  of  per- 
sonal and  national  jealousy,  asked  the  admiral  whether  he  thought  that  in 
case  he  had  not  discovered  the  Indies  (which  it  was  believed  he  had  found), 
there  were  not  men  in  Spain  who  would  have  been  equal  to  the  enterprise  ? 
Columbus  immediately  took  an  egg  that  was  before  him,  and  invited  the 
courtier  to  make  it  stand  on  one  of  its  ends.  He  could  not.  All  the  com- 
pany tried  in  vain  to  do  it.  Then  the  admiral  struck  the  egg  upon  the  table 
so  as  to  flatten  the  end  by  a fracture  and  left  it  standing.  “ Any  one  could 
do  that,”  cried  the  courtier.  “ After  I have  shown  the  way,”  replied  the 
admiral.  “Gentlemen,”  continued  Columbus,  “after  I have  shown  a new 
way  to  India,  nothing  is  easier  than  to  follow.”  The  courtier  was  answered. 

After  giving  an  account  of  his  voyage  and  discoveries  in  a letter  to 
Sanchez,  the  treasurer  of  Spain  (which  was  printed),  Columbus,  at  the 
request  of  the  monarchs,  immediately  fitted  out  another  expedition  to  con- 
tinue his  researches  in  the  western  seas.  The  harbor  of  Cadiz  was  very  soon 


COLUMBUS  AND  HIS  TRAIN  ENTERING  BARCELONA. 


58 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  I. 


the  scene  of  busy  preparation,  and  late  in  September,  1493,  the  admiral  left 
the  bay  with  three  large  ships  of  heavy  burthen,  and  fourteen  caravels,  with 
fifteen  hundred  men.  We  will  not  follow,  him  in  his  subsequent  voyages  in 
detail,  for  they  have  no  special  bearing  on  the  history  of  our  country.  It  is 
sufficient  to  say  that  he  made  three  others  from  Spain,  and  that  during  the 
last  but  one,  he  discovered  the  continent  of  America.  When  he  left  Cadiz 
on  his  second  voyage  in  the  autumn  of  1493,  his  good  fortune  seemed  to 
forsake  him.  His  followers  were  largely  selfish  adventurers  who  went  out  in 
search  of  gold  and  other  treasures.  Quarrels  and  mutinies  followed  disap- 
pointed expectations.  The  chief  blame  was  laid  upon  the  shoulders  of  the 
admiral,  and  he  finally  became  a victim  to  the  intrigues  of  vicious  men,  who, 
envious  of  his  fame  and  dignities,  sought  continually  to  build  up  their  own 
fortunes  out  of  the  ruins  of  his  character. 

Columbus  sailed  on  his  third  voyage,  at  the  close  of  May,  1493,  with  six 
ships,  from  the  port  of  San  Lucar  de  Barrameda,  near  the  mouth  of  the 
Guadalquiver.  Passing  the  Cape  de  Verde  Islands,  he  proceeded  toward  the 
equator  in  a southwesterly  direction,  and  then  sailed  due  west  with  the  trade 
winds,  in  search  of  a continent.  Supposing  Cuba  to  be  a great  cape  of  Asia, 
he  believed  that  under  the  equator  he  would  find  not  only  the  main  land, 
but  every  production  of  nature  in  greater  profusion,  perfection  and  precious- 
ness, than  elsewhere.  He  was  not  disappointed,  for  on  the  ist  of  August 
he  saw  the  continent,  not  of  Asia,  but  of  South  America,  near  the  mouth  of 
the  Orinoco  River.  That  was  not  many  days  after  Sebastian  Cabot,  an  Eng- 
lish navigator,  discovered  North  America. 

Columbus  coasted  for  awhile  near  the  shores  of  South  America,  and 
then,  broken  in  health  by  his  labors,  anxieties  and  exposures,  he  sailed  for 
his  colony  on  Hispaniola.  There  he  found  everything  in  disorder;  and  in 
his  efforts  to  bring  order  out  of  confusion,  he  so  interfered  with  the  selfish 
projects  of  leading  adventurers  there,  that  they  determined  to  ruin  him. 
Preferring  malicious  and  false  charges  against  him,  at  the  court  of  Spain, 
they  induced  the  sovereigns  to  send  out  a commissioner  to  inquire  into  the 
causes  of  the  difficulties.  Francisco  de  Bobadilla  was  sent.  He  was  as 
ambitious  and  unscrupulous  as  any  of  the  adventurers,  and  after  deposing 
Columbus  from  the  vice-royalty,  he  sent  him  in  chains  to  Spain.  Valleja, 
who  was  sent  with  the  admiral  as  a sort  of  guard,  and  also  the  master  of  the 
caravel  in  which  Columbus  was  conveyed,  were  grieved  by  this  cruel  treat- 
ment of  the  man  whom  they  revered.  They  would  have  removed  his  irons, 
but  Columbus  would  not  allow  them  to  do  so.  “No,”  he  said  proudly; 
“their  majesties  commanded  me  by  letter  to  submit  to  whatever  Bobadilla 
should  order  in  their  name ; by  their  authority  he  has  put  upon  me  these 


Chap.  V. 


NEGLECT  AND  DEATH  OF  COLUMBUS. 


59 


chains ; I will  wear  them  until  they  shall  order  them  to  be  taken  off,  and  I 
will  preserve  them  afterwards  as  relics  and  memorials  of  the  reward  of  my 
services.”  It  was  done.  “ I saw  them  always  hanging  in  his  cabinet,”  said 
his  son  and  biographer,  Fernando,  “and  he  requested  that  when  he  died, 
they  might  be  buried  with  him.” 

When,  after  the  arrival  of  the  caravel  at  Cadiz,  Isabella  heard  of  the 
cruel  treatment  of  Columbus,  she  was  very  indignant,  and  sent  an  order  for 
his  immediate  restoration  to  lib- 
erty. The  sovereigns  wrote  a let-  " 

ter  to  him  couched  in  terms  of 
affection  and  gratitude,  expressing 
their  grief  because  of  his  suffer- 
ings, and  inviting  him  to  the  court. 

The  people,  too,  were  very  indig- 
nant, and  were  loud  in  their  de- 
nunciations of  the  treatment  of 
such  a benefactor  of  their  country. 

When  he  arrived  at  Granada,  in 
December,  1498,  he  was  cordially 
received  by  the  monarchs,  who, 
disavowing  the  doings  of  Boba- 
dilla  as  contrary  to  their  instruc- 
tions, promised*  that  he  should  be 
dismissed  from  office.  But  the 
Spanish  nobles,  jealous  of  Colum- 
bus because  he  was  evidently  a 
royal  favorite,  persuaded  the  king, 
who  was  dissatisfied  with  the  ap- 
parent unproductiveness  of  the 
admiral’s  discoveries,  not  to  re- 
instate him  in  the  vice-royalty. 

Another  was  appointed  in  the 

place  of  Bobadilla.  After  experiencing  neglect,  and  alternate  hope  and 
disappointment,  for  almost  four  years,  whilst  others  were  reaping  the  harvest 
of  his  seed-time,  the  admiral  was  entrusted  with  the  command  of  a small 
expedition  to  find  a passage  through  “ the  sea  ” now  known  as  the  Gulf  of 
Mexico,  into  the  Indian  Ocean.  He  sailed  with  four  caravels  and  one  hun- 
dred and  fifty  men,  early  in  May,  1502,  and  after  much  suffering,  returned 
to  Cadiz  in  November,  1504,  sick  and  dejected.  Nineteen  days -after  his 
arrival,  the  good  Queen  Isabella  died.  “ She  was  one  of  the  purest  spirits 


6o 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  I. 


that  ever  ruled  over  the  destinies  of  a nation,”  says  Mr.  Irving.  With  her 
died  the  hopes  of  the  admiral,  for  he  knew  how  cold  and  calculating  was  the 
disposition  of  the  king.  That  ungrateful  monarch,  after  torturing  the  dis- 
coverer with  the  cold  politeness  and  evasive  promises  for  which  he  was 
noted,  rejected  the  legal  and  equitable  claims  of  Columbus  to  the  dignities 
and  emoluments  of  vice-royalty  which  had  been  secured  to  him  by  royal 
contract ; and  this  great  and  good  man,  then  about  seventy  years  of  age, 
who  had  given  more  real  honor  and  glory  to  Spain  than  had  the  whole  line 
of  her  kings  or  the  families  of  her  nobles,  was  allowed  to  pass  the  remnant 
of  his  days  in  comparative  poverty  and  obscurity.  “ I have,”  Columbus 
once  wrote,  “ no  place  to  repair  to  excepting  an  inn,  and  often  with  nothing 
to  pay  for  my  sustenance.”  At  length,  when  he  was  utterly  prostrated,  and 
hopeless  of  justice,  death  came  to  his  relief  at  Valladolid  on  the  20th  day  of 
May,  1506,  as  he  was  uttering  the  words,  “Lord,  into  thy  hands  I commit 
my  spirit.”  His  remains  were  put  into  the  convent  of  San  Francisco,  where, 
for  seven  years,  no  stone  or  inscription  marked  the  place  of  his  burial. 
Then  the  ashamed  king,  when  the  navigator’s  bones  were  removed  to  a 
monastery  in  Seville,  ordered  a marble  tomb  to  be  placed  over  them  with 
the  inscription : 

A Castilla  y a Leon 
Nuevo  Mundo  Dio  Colon. 

“To  Castile  and  Leon,  Columbus  gave  a New  World.”  He  “asked  for 
bread  ” and  he  gave  him  “ a stone.”  More  indelibly  than  on  brass  or 
marble,  is  the  truth  of  that  inscription  engraved  on  the  memory  of  mankind. 

Columbus  died  with  full  faith  that  although  princes  might  neglect  him 
and  wicked  men  might  defraud  him,  God  and  eternal  justice  would  vindicate 
his  honor  and  his  fame,  and  that  the  world  would  pay  to  him  the  just 
homage  due  for  his  services.  He  also  died  in  the  belief  that  he  had  discov- 
ered Farther  India,  and  not  an  unknown  continent;  and  such  was  the  belief 
of  all  navigators  and  scientific  men  at  that  time. 

In  the  year  1536,  the  remains  of  Columbus  and  of  his  son  Diego,  were 
taken  to  Hispaniola,  and  interred  in  the  Cathedral  at  San  Domingo.  There 
they  remained  two  hundred  and  sixty  years,  when,  in  1796,  they  were  con- 
veyed with  great  pomp  to  Havana,  in  Cuba,  where  they  now  repose.  A few 
years  ago,  a magnificent  monument  to  the  memory  of  Columbus,  was  erected 
in  his  native  city  of  Genoa,  in  the  centre  of  one  of  its  public  squares,  where 
it  is  surrounded  by  flowers  and  shrubbery.  It  is  composed  of  Carrara 
marble,  and  is  about  forty  feet  in  height.  On  four  panels  between  four 
pedestals  are  represented,  in  relief  sculpture,  four  great  events  in  his  life, 
namely,  his  Conference  with  the  Cou7icil  at  Salamanca;  the  Landvig  in 


Chap.  V. 


HONORS  AWARDED  COLUMBUS. 


6i 


America;  Presenting  the  Indians  to  Queen  Isabella,  and  the  Admiral  in 
Chains.  Upon  each  pedestal  is  a figure  personifying  respectively  Navigation, 
History,  Astronomy  and  Wisdom.  On  a round  shaft  which  rises  between 
these  figures  are  sculptured  in  high  relief  the  prows  of  ancient  vessels.  This 
shaft  is  surmounted  by  a slightly  colossal  statue  of  Columbus,  resting  his 


MONUMENT  IN  HONOR  OF  COLUMBUS  AT  GENOA. 


left  hand  on  an  anchor,  whilst  with  his  right  hand  he  presents  a naked 
Indian  maiden,  sitting  modestly  at  his  feet,  holding  in  her  hand  a small 
cross  upon  which  she  is  gazing  intently,  her  head  adorned  with  the  plumage 
of  birds.  This  figure  represents  America;  and  the  faith  of  Columbus  that 
the  New  World  would  receive  the  religion  of  Jesus  Christ  is  indicated  by 
the  symbol  of  the  Atonement. 


62 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  I. 


In  summing  up  the  character  of  Columbus,  Mr.  Irving  wrote : “ In  him 
were  singularly  combined  the  practical  and  the  poetical.  His  mind  had 
grasped  all  kinds  of  knowledge,  whether  procured  by  study  or  observation, 
which  bore  upon  his  theories ; impatient  of  the  scanty  aliment  of  the  day, 
‘ his  impetuous  ardor,’  as  has  been  well  observed,  ‘ threw  him  into  the  study 
of  the  fathers  of  the  church,  the  Arabian  Jews,  and  the  ancient  geographers;’ 
while  his  daring  but  irregular  genius,  bursting  from  the  limits  of  imperfect 
science,  bore  him  to  conclusions  far  beyond  the  intellectual  vision  of  his 
contemporaries.  If  some  of  his  conclusions  were  erroneous,  they  were  at 
least  ingenious  and  splendid.  And  their  error  resulted  from  the  clouds 
which  still  hung  over  his  peculiar  path  of  enterprise.  His  own  discoveries 
enlightened  the  ignorance  of  the  age,  guided  conjecture  to  certainty,  and 
dispelled  that  very  darkness  with  which  he  had  been  obliged  to  struggle.  It 
has  been  said  that  mercenary  views  mingled  with  the  ambition  of  Columbus, 
and  that  his  stipulations  with  the  Spanish  court  were  selfish  and  avaricious. 
The  charge  is  inconsiderate  and  unjust.  He  aimed  at  dignity  and  wealth  in 
the  same  lofty  spirit  in  which  he  sought  renown ; they  were  to  be  part  and 
parcel  of  the  achievement,  and  palpable  evidence  of  its  success ; they  were 
to  arise  from  the  territories  he  should  discover,  and  be  commensurate  in 
importance.  No  condition  could  be  more  just.” 

We  have  now  traced,  in  brief  outline,  some  of  the  principal  causes  which 
led  to  the  discovery  of  America,  and  the  chief  events  in  the  career  of  the 
great  pioneer  of  such  discovery.  He  demonstrated  the  fact  that  the  earth  is 
globular,  and  that  fertile  lands  might  be  found  by  sailing  westward  from 
Europe  across  the  Atlantic  Ocean.  Having  discovered  and  pointed  out  the 
way  to  these  lands,  he  retired,  and  other  navigators  and  discoverers  appeared 
upon  the  scene.  The  exploits  of  some  of  them,  we  will  now  consider. 


CHAPTER  VI. 


HENRY  THE  SEVENTH  OF  ENGLAND — HE  COMMISSIONS  THE  CABOTS  TO  MAKE  DISCOVERIES — VOY- 
AGE AND  DISCOVERIES  OF  SEBASTIAN  CABOT — KING  HENRY’S  AMBITIOUS  DESIGNS — CABOT  IN 
SPAIN — AMERICUS  VESPUCCIUS — HIS  PRETENDED  FIRST  DISCOVERY  OF  AMERICA — HOW,  BY 
FRAUD,  OUR  CONTINENT  WAS  CALLED  BY  HIS  NAME — THE  POPE’S  GIFT  OF  AMERICA  TO  THE 
SPANISH  MONARCH — VOYAGES  OF  CORTEREAL  TO  LABRADOR  AND  THEIR  RESULTS — YOUNG 
COLUMBUS  IN  SAN  DOMINGO — DISCOVERY  OF  CENTRAL  AMERICA— PONCE  DE  LEON’s  SEARCH 
FOR  THE  FOUNTAIN  OF  YOUTH,  AND  DISCOVERY  OF  FLORIDA — DISCOVERY  OF  SOUTH  CARO- 
LINA— CRUEL  TREATMENT  OF  NATIVES  AND  THEIR  REVENGE — ATTEMPTS  TO  COLONIZE  CEN- 
TRAL AMERICA — THE  SPANIARDS  IN  CUBA — THEIR  INTRODUCTION  OF  CHRISTIANITY  TO  THE 
NATIVES  OF  THAT  ISLAND. 

WHEN  Columbus  was  about  to  leave  Portugal  for  Spain,  he  sent 
his  brother  Bartholomew  to  England  to  ask  assistance  of  the 
British  monarch.  The  ship  in  which  he  sailed  was  robbed  by 
pirates,  but  he  reached  England,  where  he  appears  to  have  lived  several 
years.  For  reasons  not  made  clear  by  the  chroniclers,  he  did  not  apply  to 
the  monarch  until  about  the  time  when  his  brother  was  on  his  first  voyage 
of  discovery.  Henry  the  Seventh  was  then  King  of  England.  He  was  the 
first  of  the  Tudor  dynasty,  of  which  Queen  Elizabeth,  in  whose  honor  our 
Virginia  was  named,  was  the  last.  He  was  an  energetic  and  enlightened 
prince,  and  responded  to  Bartholomew’s  request  promptly  and  generously. 
He  sent  him  to  Spain  in  search  of  his  brother,  and  to  invite  him  to  the 
English  court.  At  Paris,  whilst  he  was  on  his  way,  the  Italian  heard  the 
joyful  news  of  the  great  discoveries  by  his  brother,  and  of  Christopher’s 
return  in  triumph  to  Andalusia. 

When  King  Henry  heard  of  the  marvelous  success  of  Columbus,  he  felt 
a disappointment  because  he  had  failed  to  secure  for  his  crown  and  country 
the  renown  and  advantages  which  their  assistance  in  the  great  achievement 
would  have  given.  But  he  was  not  thereby  discouraged  nor  deterred  from 
assisting  in  further  attempts  at  discovery,  though  such  assistance  was,  at 
first,  only  a permission.  By  royal  charter  he  gave  to  John  Cabot  (a  Vene- 
tian merchant  at  Bristol),  and  his  sons,  in  1496,  permission  to  explore  any 
seas  with  five  ships  and  as  many  seamen  as  they  might  choose  to  employ,  at 
their  own  expense,  “ to  discover  and  occupy  isles  or  countries  of  the  heathen 


64 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  I. 


or  infidels  before  unknown  to  Christians,  accounting  to  the  king  for  a fifth 
part  of  the  profit  upon  their  return  to  the  port  of  Bristol.”  It  was  then  the 
favorite  theory  of  both  church  and  state  that  all  lands  occupied  by  pagans  of 
right  belonged  to  Christians.  There  is  no  positive  evidence  that  the  Cabots 
took  advantage  of  this  privilege,  or  that  any  of  them  engaged  in  a voy- 
age of  discovery  before  the  year  1498,  when  John  Cabot  was  dead. 

All  Europe  was  then  ringing  with  the  fame  of  Columbus,  and  excited  by 
the  wildest  stories  of  the  marvelous  discoveries  by  Spanish  navigators. 
Maritime  nations  and  seamen  everywhere  were  crazed  with  a desire  to  be 
discoverers  of  new  lands  and  to  gather  immense  riches  from  glittering  mines. 
Englishmen  caught  the  infection,  and  their  ambitious  and  avaricious  mon- 
arch was  as  eager  as  any  to  wear  such  laurels  as  then  graced  the  brows  of 
Ferdinand  and  Isabella,  and  to  hold  the  key  of  a vast  treasure-house.  He 
was  seeking  to  secure  the  hand  of  a daughter  of  the  Spanish  sovereigns 
for  his  eldest  son  Arthur,  whose  suit  the  cold  King  of  Arragon  repelled  on 
pretexts  of  state  policy.  Piqued  by  this  circumstance  the  proud  Henry 
gladly  promoted  the  English  thirst  for  discovery,  hoping  by  its  results  not 
only  to  gain  riches  and  honor,  but  to  either  diminish  the  glory  of  his  Spanish 
rival  or  win  his  favor  by  some  splendid  achievement  in  the  new  field  of  con- 
test. So  he  listened  with  eager  attention  to  a proposition  of  Sebastian,  a 
young  son  of  John  Cabot,  concerning  a voyage  of  discovery. 

Sebastian  Cabot  appears  to  have  been  an  ardent  student  of  geography 
and  the  kindred  sciences,  from  early  life.  When  he  reached  young  manhood 
he  was  proficient  in  the  theory  and  practice  of  the  navigator’s  art.  To  him 
King  Henry  not  only  gave  a commission  to  go  on  a voyage  of  discovery, 
but  fitted  out  two  small  vessels  for  him,  in  the  year  1498.  The  history  of 
that  event  was  given  by  Sebastian  to  the  Pope’s  legate  in  Spain  in  a few 
quaint  sentences.  “ When  my  father  died,”  he  said,  “ in  that  time  when 
news  were  brought  that,  Don  Christopher  Colonus,  Genoese,  had  discovered 
the  coast  of  India,  whereof  was  great  talk  in  all  the  court  of  King  Henry 
the  Seventh,  who  then  reigned,  insomuch  that  all  men  with  great  admiration 
affirmed  it  to  be  a thing  more  divine  than  human,  to  sail  by  the  west  into 
the  east  where  spices  grew,  by  a way  that  was  never  known  before ; by  this 
fame  and  report,  there  increased  in  my  heart  a great  flame  of  desire  to 
attempt  some  notable  thing.  And  understanding  by  reason  of  the  sphere, 
that  if  I should  sail  by  way.  of  the  northwest,  I should,  by  a shorter  tract, 
come  into  India,  I therefore  caused  the  king  to  be  advertised  of  my  desire, 
who  immediately  commanded  two  caravels  to  be  furnished,  with  all  things 
appertaining  to  the  voyage.” 

All  accounts  of  that  voyage  are  very  meagre,  and  most  of  them  are  some- 


Chap.  VI. 


FIGHTING  THE  ICE. 


65 


what  contradictory.  Sebastian  Cabot  had  probably  sailed  as  far  as  Cape 
Farewell,  in  Greenland,  on  trading  voyages  in  his  father’s  ships,  and  knew 
of  the  cold,  icy  sea  beyond.  Now  he  voyaged  in  the  same  direction,  hoping 
to  make  a passage  to  India  during  the  warm  summer  time.  Leaving  Bristol 
in  May,  1498,  with  the  two  caravels  and  a full  supply  of  men,  he  sailed  to 
the  northwest  until  the  ice  pack  in  Davis’  Straits  barred  the  way.  Turning 
southward,  he  discovered  land  late  in  June  or  early  in  July,  which  he  named 
Prima  Vista — First  View.  Whether  this  was  the  northern  shores  of  New- 
foundland, or  the  continent  on  the  coast  of  Labrador,  near  Cape  Charles, 
cannot  be  determined.  Unlike  Lief  the  Northman,  who  sailed  southward 
after  seeing  the  land,  Cabot  turned  northward  in  search  of  a passage  to 


CABOT  IN  DAVls’  STRAITS. 


Cathay,  and  followed  the  coast  of  the  continent  almost  to  the  sixtieth 
degree  of  north  latitude,  when  the  ice  would  permit  him  to  go  no  further. 
Although  it  was  then  about  mid-summer,  the  weather  was  very  cold  ; and 
seeing  no  prospect  of  an  open  sea  further  northward,  Cabot  sailed  back,  dis- 
covered a large  island  which  he  called  New-found-land — Newfoundland — and 
observed  the  immense  numbers  of  codfishes  which  have  continued  to  fill  the 
waters  there  ever  sinde.  He  divulged  this  secret  to  Europe  after  his  return, 
and  within  five  or  six  years  thereafter  fishermen  from  England,  Brittany  and 
Normandy  were  off  Newfoundland  gathering  these  treasures  of  the  sea. 
Leaving  Newfoundland,  Cabot  coasted  as  far  as  the  shores  of  Maine,  and 
some  writers  think  no  farther ; but  if  the  reports  of  his  conversation  with 
Butrigarius,  the  Pope’s  legate,  be  true,  he  went  as  far  as  the  Carolinas. 


66 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  I. 


“ There,”  he  said  to  that  functionary,  “ my  victuals  failing,  I departed  from 
thence  and  returned  into  England,  where  I found  great  tumults  among  the 
people  and  preparations  for  wars  in  Scotland,  by  reason  whereof  there  was 
no  more  consideration  had  to  this  voyage.  Whereupon  I went  into  Spain, 
to  the  Catholic  king.” 

Henry  was  then  struggling  for  his  throne  against  righteous  claimants. 
Ferdinand  refused  to  give  his  daughter  in  marriage  to  Arthur  whilst  these 
claimants  existed.  The  unscrupulous  Tudor  beheaded  two  of  them  in  the 
tower,  and  eagerly  depressed  and  despoiled  the  old  nobility  who  were 
adherents  of  the  fallen  house  of  York,  his  rival.  These  things  caused  the 
“ tumults  among  the  people,”  mentioned  by  Cabot.  The  king’s  eagerness  to 
enrich  himself  by  despoiling  that  old  nobility;  the  agreement  of  Ferdinand 
to  bestow  his  daughter  Catharine  upon  Arthur,  and  the  failure  of  Cabot  to 
bring  back  gold  from  America,  all  caused  the  monarch  to  give  “ no  more 
consideration  to  this  voyage.”  Prince  Arthur  died  soon  after  the  nuptials, 
and  Catharine  became  the  unfortunate  wife  of  Henry  VHI. 

The  discovery  of  North  America,  by  young  Cabot,  then  only  twenty-one 
years  of  age,  had  conferred  more  immortal  honor  upon  the  English  monarch 
and  the  English  nation,  than  all  the  royal  affiliations  and  the  heaping  up  of 
gold.  He  was  a native  of  England,  and  had  opened  a pathway  for  his 
countrymen  to  a new  continent.  But  he  was  neglected  by  his  king,  and  he 
finally  went  into  the  service  of  the  Spanish  sovereign  whose  daughter  was 
then  the  wife  of  the  monarch  of  England.  On  the  death  of  Ferdinand,  he 
was  so  annoyed  by  the  jealousies  of  the  Spanish  nobles,  that  he  returned  to 
his  native  country,  and  not  long  afterward  we  find  him  on  another  voyage 
in  search  of  a northwest  passage  to  the  Indian  Seas.  He  penetrated  to 
Hudson’s  Bay,  and  after  fighting  the  ice-pack  there,  he  returned  to  England 
discomfited,  and  never  made  another  voyage  to  the  coasts  of  North  America. 
The  successor  of  Ferdinand  invited  him  back  to  Spain,  and  made  him  chief 
pilot  of  the  realm.  After  several  voyages,  in  one  of  which  he  made 
researches  along  the  southeastern  coast  of  South  America,  he,  in  his  old  age, 
resigned  his  office  into  the  hands  of  the  Spanish  monarch,  and  returned  to 
his  native  land.  There  he  was  highly  honored  and  liberally  pensioned  by 
the  “ boy-king,”  Edward  the  Sixth.  Queen  Mary,  whose  husband  was  a 
son  of  the  Spanish  monarch  whose  third  invitation  to  return  to  Spain  was 
rejected  by  Cabot,  neglected  the  eminent  navigator,  and  he  was  allowed  to 
die  in  comparative  poverty,  in  the  town  of  his  birth  (Bristol),  when  he  was 
eighty  years  of  age.  His  happy  temperament,  which  made  him  always 
cheerful,  was  displayed  the  year  before  his  death,  when  he  danced  at  an 
assembly  of  young  seamen  with  all  the  vivacity  of  youth. 


Chap.  VI. 


HOW  AMERICA  RECEIVED  ITS  NAME. 


67 


The  name  of  Americus  Vespuccius  or  Amerigo  Vespucci,  as  the  Spaniards 
call  him,  appears  prominent  in  history  as  one  of  the  discoverers  of  America. 
He  has  no  valid  title  to  that  distinction.  Proofs  accumulate  as  investiga- 
tions proceed,  which  show  conclusively  that  he  was  the  author  or  abettor  of 
a stupendous  historical  fraud  by  which  Columbus  was  cheated  out  of  the 
honor  of  having  his  name  given  to  this  continent. 

Vespuccius  first  appears  in  history  as  a mercantile  agent  of  the  Medici 
family  of  Florence,  first  in  Barcelona  and  soon  afterward  in  Seville,  in  Spain. 
He  was  then  about  forty  years  of  age,  having  been  born  in  Florence  in 
1451.  In  Seville  he  was  actively  engaged  in  furnishing  supplies  for  ships 
fitting  out  for  exploring  and  mercantile  expeditions.  In  that  capacity  he 
had  much  personal  intercourse  with  Columbus,  whilst  the  admiral  was  pre- 
paring the  large  fleet  for  his  second  voyage.  The  narratives  of  the  great 
Genoese  inspired  Vespuccius  with  a strong  desire  to  make  a mercantile  ven- 
ture in  a voyage  to  the  new-found  world,  and  he  had  ambitious  dreams  of 
becoming  a discoverer  likewise.  He  studied  geography  and  the  kindred 
sciences,  to  fit  himself  for  such  an  expedition;  and  when,  in  May,  1499, 
Alonzo  de  Ojedo  sailed  from  Port  St.  Mary,  opposite  Cadiz,  with  four  ships, 
following  the  southern  route  of  Columbus  to  South  America,  Vespuccius 
accompanied  him  simply  as  an  adventurer  and  self-constituted  geographer. 
They  discovered  mountains  in  South  America,  when  off  the  coast  of  Suri- 
nam, and  then  ran  along  the  continent  to  the  island  of  Trinidad,  which 
Columbus  had  named  the  year  before.  Thence  they  cruised  along  the 
coasts  and  islands  of  Venezuela,  and  crossing  the  Caribbean  Sea,  touched  at 
Hispaniola.  Proceeding  towards  Spain,  they  engaged  in  kidnapping  the 
natives  of  the  Antilles,  and  in  June,  1500,  entered  the  port  of  Cadiz,  the 
four  vessels  crowded  with  captives  who  were  sold  as  slaves  to  the  Spanish 
grandees. 

Vespuccius,  who  seems  to  have  been  a shrewd,  audacious,  and  unscrupu- 
lous man,  immediately  sent  an  account  of  the  discoveries,  in  a letter,  to  one 
of  the  Medici  family,  assuming  for  himself  the  credit  of  that  discovery ; and 
in  order  to  establish  his  claim  to  first  discoverer  of  the  American  continent, 
he  antedated  the  time  of  the  commencement  of  the  voyage,  making  it  in 
1497,  the  year  before  Columbus  and  Cabot  made  their  respective  discoveries, 
and  saying  that  the  expedition  was  absent  from  Spain  twenty-five  months. 
To  this  statement,  the  learned  and  conscientious  Charlevoix  says:  “Ojeda, 
when  judicially  interrogated,  gave  the  lie  direct.”  Herrera,  an  early  Spanish 
historian,  accuses  Vespuccius  of  falsifying  the  dates  of  two  voyages  in  which 
he  was  engaged,  and  of  confounding  the  one  with  the  other,  “ in  order  that 
he  might  arrogate  to  himself  the  glory  of  having  discovered  the  continent.” 


68 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  I. 


Vespuccius  in  other  letters,  told  of  other  voyages  and  great  discoveries 
which  he  had  made  whilst  in  the  service  of  the  King  of  Portugal,  but  cotem- 
porary navigators  and  chroniclers  made  no  mention  of  them.  They  were 
probably  fictions  of  the  boastful  Florentine  who  had  become  expert  in  the 
construction  of  charts,  and  was  familiar  with  the  details  of  the  numerous 
exploring  voyages  made  from  Spain  and  Portugal  in  his  day.  Finally,  when 
Columbus  was  dead  and  no  voice  of  accusation  or  denial  could  escape  his 
lips,  these  letters  of  Vespuccius,  giving  an  account  of  his  pretended  voyages 
and  discoveries,  were  published  at  St.  Diey,  in  Lorraine,  and  dedicated  to 
the  reigning  duke  of  that  country,  which  was  then,  as  now,  a German  prov- 
ince. In  that  publication  the  name  of  America,  as  applied  to  our  continent, 
was  used.  For  this  Vespuccius  is  responsible.  It  is  possible  that  the  letters 
themselves  were  forgeries,  and  that  Vespuccius  was  not  blameable  for  their 
publication  ; but  he  became  an  abettor  in  the  fraud  by  not  repudiating  them. 
They  were  published  in  1507,  the  year  after  the  death  of  Columbus  and 
four  years  before  that  of  the  Florentine. 

That  Vespuccius  is  responsible  for  the  fraud  involved  in  giving  his  name 
to  the  newly-discovered  continent,  seems  clear  from  other  circumstances. 
He  was  in  communication  with  a learned  German  schoolmaster  and  cosmog- 
rapher,  named  Woldseemiiler,  who  pedantically  transformed  his  name 
(Wood-lake-miller)  into  the  Greek  one  of  Hylacomylus.  He  was  a cor- 
respondent of  the  Academy  of  Cosmography  which  the  Duke  of  Lorraine 
had  established  at  Strasburg,  and  at  the  request  or  suggestion  of  Vespuccius 
he  proposed  to  the  members  of  that  academy,  under  whose  auspices  the 
letters  of  Americus  were  published,  the  name  of  America  for  the  western 
continent.  At  about  the  same  time  Hylacomylus  issued  at  St.  Diey  a little 
work  entitled  “ Cosmographie  Rudimenta,”  in  which  it  was  proposed  to  name 
the  continent  America.  He  took  an  active  part  in  the  publication  of  the 
letters  of  his  friend,  and  he  may  be  regarded  as  the  chief  perpetrator  of  the 
fraud  with  Vespuccius  as  the  accessory,  at  least,  because  he  sanctioned  it  by 
his  silence.  “ Considering  the  intimacy  of  the  two  parties,”  says  the  learned 
Viscount  Santarem,  “ there  is  no  doubt  that  the  geographer  was  guided  by 
the  navigator  in  what  he  did.”  Referring  to  the  honor  so  conferred  on 
Americus  Vespuccius,  the  late  Dr.  Francis  Lieber  wrote  to  the  author  of 
this  history:  “ Ethically  speaking,  there  has  never  been  erected  a monument 
so  magnificent,  enduring  and  cruelly  unjust ; as  if  the  Madonna  di  Sisto 
were  not  called  by  Raphael’s  name  but  by  that  of  the  man  who  framed  it 
first.”  It  is  probably  too  late  now,  after  centuries  of  use,  to  correct  the 
injustice  by  changing  the  name  of  America.  Washington,  with  his  usual 
clear  conception  of  right,  did  justice  to  Columbus  by  giving  to  the  territory 


Chap.  VI. 


TO  WHOM  HONOR  IS  DUE. 


69 


in  which  the  seat  of  our  national  government  was  permanently  established, 
the  name  of  the  District  of  Columbia.  Although  Cabot  probably  discov- 
ered the  continent  a few  days  before  Columbus  touched  the  shores  of  South 
America,  he  is  not  entitled  to  the  honor  of  giving  his  name  to  our  continent. 
Voltaire  justly  declared:  “The  glory  of  having  discovered  the  New  World 
undoubtedly  belongs  to  him  who  had  the  genius  and  courage  to  undertake 
the  first  voyage.”  Newton  observed : “ Those  who  follow  are  only  dis- 
ciples.” Cabot  was  a noble  disciple. 


VESPUCCIUS.  COLUMBUS.  ISABELLA.  CABOT. 


Many  other  voyages  in  search  of  new  lands  and  great  treasures,  which 
were  made  from  Spain  at  the  beginning  of  the  sixteenth  century,  had  no 
immediate  relation  to  the  history  of  our  country,  and  we  will  pass  them  by 
unnoticed.  Others  had  a direct  or  indirect  connection  with  further  discov- 
eries and  final  settlements  in  this  region  of  the  world,  and  these  we  will  con- 
sider. 

When  the  discoveries  of  Columbus  were  made  known,  the  King  of  Por- 
tugal felt  a strong  desire  to  send  out  a similar  expedition  at  the  expense  of 
the  crown.  But  the  Spanish  monarchs  had,  with  wise  sagacity,  obtained 
from  Pope  Alexander  the  Sixth  (the  pontiff  who,  by  accident,  took  a fatal 
draught  from  a poisoned  bowl  which  he  had  prepared  for  another),  the  gift 
of  all  lands  that  lay  three  hundred  leagues  westward  of  the  Azores  ; and  the 
Portuguese  sovereign  dared  not  interfere  with  these  rights  of  Spain.  But 
when  the  news  of  Cabot’s  discovery  of  a continent  in  the  northwest,  reached 
Lisbon,  King  Emanuel  the  Great,  immediately  fitted  out  two  caravels  for 


70 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  1. 


a voyage  toward  that  continent,  and  placed  ‘them  under  the  command  of 
Caspar  Cortereal.  He  was  a gentleman  of  enterprising  and  determined 
character,  who  had  been  reared  in  the  household  of  the  Portuguese  monarch, 
and  ardently  thirsted  for  glory.  He  first  touched  the  northern  extremity  of 
Newfoundland,  and,  it  is  believed,  discovered  the  Gulf  of  St.  Lawrence. 
He  went  up  the  coast  of  Labrador  almost  to  Hudson’s  Bay,  discovering 
nothing  of  importance  not  already  seen  by  Cabot.  The  natives  appeared  to 
him  rugged  and  strong,  and  capital  subjects  for  slaves ; so  he  seized  fifty- 
nine  of  them,  carried  them  on  board  his  vessels,  and  with  this  living  treasure 
he  returned  to  Portugal.  There  he  made  a profitable  sale  of  his  captives. 
“They  are  extremely  fitted  to  endure  labor,”  wrote  the  Venetian  ambassa- 
dor at  the  Portuguese  court,  “ and  will  probably  turn  out  the  best  slaves 
which  have  been  discovered  up  to  this  time.” 

The  profits  of  this  voyage  excited  the  cupidity  of  Cortereal  and  his  king, 
and  they  determined  to  engage  in  an  active  slave-trade  with  Laborador 
(Labrador),  so  named  because  of  the  admirable  qualities  of  the  natives  as 
laborers.  Cortereal  went  on  a second  voyage  in  1501,  and  was  lost  at  sea. 
His  brother  Michael  went  in  search  of  him  and  was  never  heard  of  after- 
ward. The  king  sent  a ship  to  search  for  the  brothers,  but  no  tidings  of 
them  were  brought  back.  These  disasters  frustrated  the  cruel  designs  of  the 
slave-traders,  and  the  Portuguese  monarch  sought  to  win  glory  for  his  favor- 
ite and  his  crown,  by  claiming  that  Cortereal  was  not  only  the  first  dis- 
coverer of  Newfoundland,  but  that  he  was  the  first  to  see  the  continent  in 
that  region.  In  a Portuguese  map  published  in  1508,  the  coast  of  Labrador 
is  called  Terra  Corterealis  or  Cortereal’s  Land;  and  in  support  of  the  claim 
that  he  was  the  first  discoverer  of  it,  maps  were  actually  forged.  But  all 
efforts  to  deprive  Cabot  of  that  honor  failed. 

The  new-found  continent  at  once  became  an  object  of  great  interest  and 
attraction  to  adventurers  of  every  kind,  and  a thirst  for  gold  occasioned  the 
fitting  out  of  expeditions  for  further  discoveries  on  the  coasts  of  the  main 
north  and  west  of  Hispaniola.  That  island,  where  the  first  Spanish  settle- 
ments were  made,  became  the  centre  of  operations  in  the  seas  around,  and 
on  the  coasts  of  the  adjacent  main  after  its  complete  subjection  to  Castilian 
rule.  Don  Diego  Columbus,  the  son  and  successor  of  the  admiral,  was 
appointed  governor,  and  there,  with  pomp  and  ceremony,  he  and  his  “vice- 
queen ” held  a sort  of  court  which  spread  a halo  of  romance  around  that 
West  Indian  empire.  Diego  had  married  a daughter  of  the  renowned 
Duke  of  Alva,  and  in  June,  1509,  had  sailed  from  San  Lucar  with  his  wife, 
his  brother  Don  Fernando  who  had  grown  to  manhood  and  was  well  edu- 
cated, and  his  two  uncles.  They  were  accompanied  by  a numerous  retinue 


Chap.  VI. 


PONCE  DE  LEON’S  AMBITION. 


71 


of  cavaliers  with  their  wives,  and  young  ladies  of  rank  and  family  who  were 
more  distinguished  for  high  blood  than  riches.  The  latter  were  adventurers 
also — sent  out  to  find  rich  husbands  among  the  settlers  in  Hispaniola.  They 
were  successful,  for  all  of  them  were  soon  married  to  the  wealthiest  colonists, 
and  refined  the  rude  manners  which  prevailed  among  them. 

Not  long  after  Diego’s  arrival  Juan  Ponce,  commonly  known  as  Ponce  de 
Leon,  who  had  borne  a conspicuous  part  in  the  subjugation  of  Hispaniola, 
as  a military  commander,  was  appointed  by  the  king  governor  of  Porto  Rico, 
a large  island  east  of  Hayti.  Distinguished  in  the  wars  with  the  Moors,  and 
a companion  of  Columbus  in  his  second  voyage,  Juan  Ponce  was  regarded 
with  reverence  by  many,  for  his  locks  were  white  with  age,  and  he  had  a 
noble  Castilian  lineage.  He  was  then  an  old  man  animated  with  the  ambi- 
tions of  youth ; and  he  was  still  seeking  renown  and  wealth.  The  enjoy- 
ment of  life  had  ever  been  an  exquisite  pleasure  to  him,  and  his  desire  to 
prolong  his  earthly  existence  in  vigor  was  intense.  That  desire  made  him 
readily  believe  the  marvelous  tales  told  by  some  of  the  natives,  of  crystal 
waters  flowing  from  living  springs  among  the  Bahama  Islands,  or  on  the 
coast  of  a beautiful  country  near  them,  in  which  he  who  bathed  would  be 
instantly  endowed  with  immortal  youth  and  great  beauty.  They  told  him 
that  these  fountains  of  youth  were  among  magnificent  trees  which  bore 
golden  fruit,  where  the  air  was  perpetually  laden  with  the  most  exquisite 
perfume  of  flowers,  and  that  these  fruits  were  gathered  and  given  to 
strangers  by  beautiful  maidens.  Here  was  the  old  story  of  the  Gardens  of 
the  Hesperides  in  another  form,  which  Hesiod  said  lay  “ beyond  the  bright 
ocean.”  Ponce  dreamed  of  these  gardens,  their  fountains,  their  golden  fruit 
and  the  beautiful  maidens,  until  he  could  no  longer  repress  his  desire  to  go 
in  search  of  them.  So,  at  the  beginning  of  spring  in  1512 — a month  after 
Vespuccius  expired  at  Seville — he  sailed  from  Porto  Rico  for  the  Bahamas, 
with  ships  fitted  out  at  his  own  expense.  On  reaching  the  group,  he  went 
from  island  to  island  tasting  of  and  bathing  in  every  stream  and  lake  that 
met  his  vision.  Finally,  disappointed  but  not  disheartened,  he  extended  his 
researches  in  a northwesterly  direction.  A few  days  afterwards,  west  winds 
brought  the  delicious  perfumes  of  flowers.  The  heart  of  the  old  cavalier 
leaped  with  joy  and  hope.  Soon  a long  line  of  wooded  shores  were  in  view, 
and  as  he  drew  near,  Ponce  saw  lofty  trees  (magnolias)  whose  marvelous 
blossoms  were  tinting  the  forest,  and  burdening  the  air  with  their  delicate 
fragrance.  He  believed  he  was  on  the  borders  of  the  fabled  paradise. 

It  was  Easter  morning  w'hen  Ponce  and  his  companions  landed  near  the 
site  of  St.  Augustine,  on  the  southeastern  borders  of  our  Republic.  After  he 
and  his  followers  had  chanted  a joyous  hymn  commemorative  of  the  resur- 
6 


72 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  1. 


rection  of  Jesus,  he  took  possession  of  the  great  island,  as  he  supposed  it  to 
be,  in  the  name  of  the  sovereign  of  Castile.  Because  of  its  wealth  of  flowers, 
some  say,  or  because  he  first  saw  the  land  on  Palm  Sunday  (Pascua  Florida), 
as  others  tell  us,  he  gave  to  the  country  the  name  of  Florida,  now  one  of  the 
States  of  our  Union.  Among  its  forests  and  savannahs  he  sought  in  vain  for 
the  miraculous  P'ountain  of  Youth  and  Beauty,  exciting  the  suspicions  of  the 
natives.  Then  he  cruised  along  its  shores,  doubled  Cape  Canaveral,  and 
struggling  with  the  Gulf  Stream,  sailed  southward  until  he  became  entangled 
in  a group  of  small  islands  abounding  with  huge  turtles.  This  group  he 
called  the  Tortugas — the  Turtles — their  present  name.  On  another  group 
he  discovered  only  a single  inhabitant — an  old  Indian  woman — who  was  not 
a realization  of  his  dream  of  beautiful  maidens  in  the  gardens  of  the  Hespe- 
rides.  He  took  the  wrinkled  hermitess  with  him,  hoping  that  she  might  tell 
him  where  among  the  Bahamas  he  should  find  the  Bimini,  the  beautiful 
island  with  the  miraculous  fountain.  After  buffeting  the  elements  for  sev- 
eral days,  Ponce  transferred  the  old  v/oman  to  the  ship  of  Ortubia,  one  of 
his  trusted  captains,  who  was  instructed  to  pursue  the  search.  Then  he 
returned  to  Porto  Rico,  an  older  if  not  a wiser  man.  He  had  not  secured 
for  himself  immortal  youth,  but  he  had  won  the  immortal  honor  of  being  the 
discoverer  of  Florida,  a part  of  the  North  American  continent  before 
unknown. 

Ortubia  soon  arrived  at  Porto  Rico.  The  old  woman  had  guided  him  to 
Bimini,  where  he  found  beautiful  groves  and  sparkling  springs  and  limpid 
streams,  but  not  one  of  the  waters  could  restore  to  an  old  man  the  vernal 
greenness  of  his  youth.  So  Ponce  turned  his  thoughts  to  more  practical 
subjects.  Returning  to  Spain  a few  months  later,  he  told  the  sovereigns  of 
the  beautiful  land  he  had  discovered,  and  received  the  appointment  of  Gov- 
ernor of  Florida  on  condition  that  he  should  plant  a colony  there.  This 
was  not  attempted  until  several  years  afterward.  He  had  been  moping  in 
disappointment  at  Porto  Rico,  after  an  unsuccessful  expedition  against  the 
Caribs,  until  he  was  assured  that  Florida  was  not  an  island,  but  a part  of  the 
continent.  Then  ambitious  desires  moved  his  sluggish  heart,  and  the  bril- 
liant achievements  of  Cortez  in  the  west,  aroused  the  slumbering  energies  of 
the  old  cavalier.  With  nearly  all  of  his  wealth  in  two  ships,  he  sailed  from 
Porto  Rico  in  1521,  and  landed  on  the  shores  of  Florida,  not  far  from  where 
he  had  first  discovered  that  land,  to  prepare  for  founding  a colony  there. 
He  was  met  by  a crowd  of  natives  who  had  gathered  near  the  beach  with 
bows  and  arrows  and  long  javelins,  to  defend  their  land  from  the  intrusion 
of  the  pale  faces,  for  they  had  lately  been  taught,  by  the  bitter  experience 
of  their  neighbors,  to  look  upon  them  as  children  of  the  Evil  Spirit.  A 


Chap.  VI. 


EXPEDITION  OF  D’ALLYON. 


73 


sharp  battle  ensued.  Several  of  the  Spaniards  were  killed,  and  Ponce  de 
Leon,  badly  wounded  in  his  thigh,  was  carried  on  board  his  ship  and  con- 
veyed to  Cuba,  where  he  died.  Upon  his  tomb  was  written  the  following 
inscription,  in  Latin : 

In  this  Sepulchre  Rest  the  Bones  of  a Man  who  was  Lion  by  Name  and 

STILL  MORE  BY  NATURE. 

Meanwhile,  the  avarice  of  the  Spaniards  in  Hayti  had  been  greatly 
excited  by  the  reports  of  a mariner  who  had  accidentally  visited  the  coast 


JUAN  PONCE  DE  LEON  CARRIED  ON  BOARD  HIS  SHIP. 


near  the  entrance  to  the, Savannah  River,  where  the  natives  presented  him 
with  gold  and  pearls.  He  also  represented  the  masculine  natives  as  athletic 
and  fine  looking.  A commercial  company  was  soon  formed  in  Hayti  to  visit 
that  country  to  obtain  gold  and  slaves.  Luke  Vasquez  D’Allyon,  a wealthy 
colonist  who  owned  extensive  mines  in  Hayti,  was  at  the  head  of  the  com- 
pany. His  chief  object  in  the  movement  was  to  obtain  slaves  to  work  in 
his  mines,  for  cruelty  had  almost  exterminated  the  native  men  of  the  island. 
With  two  ships  he  sailed  in  a northwesterly  direction  in  the  year  1520,  and 


74 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  I. 


arrived  on  the  coast  of  South  Carolina  through  St.  Helen’s  Sound.  The 
natives,  believing  the  ships  were  sea-monsters,  crowded  the  shores  in  wonder- 
ment. When  they  saw  clothed  and  bearded  men  come  out  of  them,  they 
fled  to  the  woods  in  alarm.  Two  of  them  were  caught  and  carried  on  board 
D’Allyon’s  ship,  where  they  were  feasted,  dressed  in  Spanish  costume,  and 
sent  back.  Their  appearance  so  pleased  their  sachem,  that  he  sent  fifty  of 
his  subjects  to  the  vessels  with  fruits  and  provisions.  When  the  Spaniards 
took  long  excursions  through  the  forests,  he  sent  men  with  them  as  guides 
and  servants.  In  some  of  these  excursions  they  were  presented  with  gold 
and  silver,  and  pearls ; and  they  were  everywhere  entertained  with  the  kind- 
est hospitality.  They  were  rudely  feasted  and  were  as  rudely  serenaded  with 
the  music  of  the  pipe  and  drum.  Dancing-girls  afforded  amusement  for 
them,  and  they  departed  with  pontifical  blessings  from  the  dwellings  of 
chiefs  and  sachems. 

Having  fully  “ spied  out  the  land  ” of  this  simple  people,  and  being 
ready  for  departure,  D’Allyon  invited  a large  number  of  the  native  men  to  a 
feast  on  his  ships,  and  to  engage  in  traffic.  Having  finished  the  trade,  they 
were  invited  below,  where  they  were  well  fed,  and  filled  with  strong  wine. 
When  all  were  made  stupid  by  intoxication,  the  hatches  of  the  ships  were 
closed  and  the  deluded  men  were  carried  away  captive.  Many  died  from 
vexation  and  starvation,  for  they  refused  to  take  food.  One  of  the  ships 
was  foundered  at  sea,  and  Spaniards  and  captives  were  all  lost.  The  less 
fortunate  captives  were  taken  to  Hayti,  where  D’Allyon,  deaf  to  the  voices 
of  mercy,  humanity  and  justice,  made  them  slaves.  The  story  of  this  per- 
fidy and  wickedness,  spread  rapidly  from  lip  to  lip  along  the  coast,  even  so 
far  as  the  region  of  St.  Augustine,  and  it  aroused  the  natives  to  those  acts 
of  defence  and  revenge,  which  resulted  in  the  wounding  of  Juan  Ponce  de 
Leon,  and  the  expulsion  of  his  followers  from  the  land,  the  next  year. 

Instead  of  being  punished  for  his  crime  against  mankind,  D’Allyon  was 
rewarded  as  a discoverer  of  new  lands,  when  he  visited  the  court  of  Spain 
soon  afterwards.  He  was  also  appointed  chief  magistrate  of  the  province  of 
Chicora,  as  the  native  South  Carolinians  called  their  country;  and  he  was 
vested  with  authority  to  plant  a colony  there.  Under  this  commis.sion  he 
fitted  out  three  ships  at  Hayti,  and  with  the  mariner  Miruela,  who  first  saw 
the  coast  near  the  mouth  of  the  Savannah  River,  he  sailed  for  Chicora,  and 
passing  through  St.  Helen’s  Sound  reached  the  continent  near  the  mouth  of 
the  Combahee.  There  he  opened  traffic  with  the  natives,  who  seemed  to  be 
indifferent  to  his  crime,  and  when  he  had  finished  trading  he  proceeded  to 
plant  his  colony  on  an  island  in  the  waters  of  Port  Royal  Sound,  near  the 
site  of  the  present  town  of  Beaufort,  South  Carolina. 


Chap.  VI. 


SPIRIT  OF  THE  SPANISH  CONQUERORS. 


75 


A part  of  D’Allyon’s  company  had  landed  and  prepared  to  lay  the  foun- 
dation of  a town,  when  a deputation  came  from  the  sachem  of  the  Com- 
bahee  and  invited  the  Spaniards  to  a great  feast  at  his  village  at  the  mouth 
of  that  river.  About  two  hundred  of  them  went  to  the  banquet,  and  were 
treated  with  the  most  friendly  hospitalities.  For  three  days  and  three 
nights  the  feast  went  on,  and  at  the  end  of  it,  whilst  the  guests  were  soundly 
sleeping,  the  Indians  fell  upon  and  massacred  the  whole  of  them.  They 
had  fully  matched  the  treachery  of  the  pale-faces,  but  they  were  not  satis- 
fied. Hastening  to  the  site  of  the  projected  town,  they  slew  many  there. 
Some  of  the  Spaniards  escaped  to  the  ships.  Among  them  was  D’Allyon, 
who,  badly  wounded,  died  soon  afterward.  Retributive  justice  had  over- 
taken him  on  the  theatre  of  his  great  crime.  So  perished  the  first  germ  of 
a settlement  of  Europeans  that  was  planted  in  the  soil  of  our  present 
domain. 

In  the  meantime  the  Spaniards  had  been  making  explorations  and  con- 
quests westward  of  Hispaniola  or  Hayti.  In  the  year  1502,  as  we  have 
already  observed,  Columbus  had  sailed  from  Cadiz  with  four  ships,  to  search 
for  a passage  to  the  Indian  Seas  through  the  Gulf  of  Mexico,  accompanied 
by  his  brother  Bartholomew  and  his  young  son  Fernando.  He  arrived  in 
the  Caribbean  Sea  in  June  and  soon  afterward  he  discovered  the  coast  of 
Central  America,  which  he  explored  from  the  Isthmus  of  Darien  far  up  the 
shores  of  Nicaragua. 

The  region  of  Central  America  King  Ferdinand  divided  into  two  prov- 
inces, in  1 509,  and  prepared  to  plant  colonies  there.  One  of  these  provinces 
he  placed  under  the  command  of  the  navigator  Ojeda,  and  the  other  under 
Diego  de  Nicuesa.  Late  in  the  autumn  Ojeda  sailed  from  Hayti,  accom- 
panied by  Pizarro,  who  afterward  became  the  energetic  and  cruel  conqueror 
of  Peru.  Hernando  Cortez,  who  was  afterward  the  savage  conqueror  of 
Mexico,  would  have  sailed  with  Ojeda,  had  not  a violently  inflamed  eye  pre- 
vented. Ojeda  was  also  accompanied  by  some  friars  whose  chief  business  at 
the  outset  seems  to  have  been  the  reading  aloud  to  the  natives,  in  the  Latin 
language,  a proclamation  by  the  Spanish  leader  which  had  been  prepared  by 
learned  divines  in  Spain.  It  declared  that  God  who  made  them  all,  had 
given  in  charge  of  one  man,  named  Saint  Peter,  who  had  his  seat  at  Rome, 
all  the  nations  of  the  earth  with  all  the  lands  and  seas  on  the  globe ; that  his 
successors  at  Rome  called  Popes,  were  endowed  in  the  same  way  by  God ; 
that  one  of  them  had  given  to  the  Spanish  monarchs  all  the  islands  and  con- 
tinents in  the  Western  Ocean  ; that  all  natives  yet  found  had  given  cheerful 
submission  to  whatever  the  soldiers  and  priests  required  of  them,  and  that 
the  natives  of  the  land  before  him  were  expected  to  do  the  same.  In  the 


76 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  I. 


event  of  their  willing  submission,  he  promised  them  many  favors.  “ If  you 
do  not  this,”  he  said,  “ or  wickedly  and  intentionally  delay  to  do  so,  I certify 
to  you,  that,  by  the  aid  of  God,  I will  powerfully  invade  and  make  war  upon 
you  in  all  parts  and  modes  that  I can,  and  will  subdue  you  to  the  yoke  and 
obedience  of  the  Church  and  his  majesty;  and  I will  take  your  wives  and 
children  and  make  slaves  of  them,  and  sell  them  as  such,  and  dispose  of 
them  as  his  majesty  may  command  ; and  I will  take  your  effects,  and  will  do 
you  all  the  harm  and  injury  in  my  power,  as  vassals  who  will  not  obey  or 


OJEDA  CUTTING  HIS  WAY  THROUGH  THE  INDIAN  RANKS. 


receive  their  sovereign,  and  who  resist  and  oppose  him.  And  I protest  that 
the  deaths  and  disasters  which  may  in  this  manner  be  occasioned,  will  be  the 
fault  of  yourselves,  and  not  of  his  majesty,  nor  of  me,  nor  of  these  cavaliers 
who  accompany  me.” 

This  infamous  proclamation  which  justified  murder  and  robbery  under 
the  sanction  of  that  religion  the  chief  attributes  of  which  are  justice,  benev- 
olence and  mercy,  was  adopted  as  the  formula,  and  indicated  the  spirit  of 


Chap.  V, 


OJEDA  IN  CENTRAL  AMERICA  AND  CUBA. 


77 


the  Spanish  invaders  of  America  afterwards.  Although  read  aloud  by  the 
friars,  the  pagans  could  not  understand  a word  of  it.  The  Christians  did  not 
expect  them  to  understand  it.  Their  offices  were  fulfilled  when  the  Latin 
words  had  gone  into  the  ears  of  their  dusky  listeners.  The  consequences 
must  be  borne  by  the  wondering  heathen  ! 

Delay  in  making  a willing  submission  was  speedily  followed  by  violence. 
The  natives  were  attacked  by  the  intruders  and  some  of  them  were  killed. 
Some  were  sent  captive  to  the  ships. 

Ojeda,  apprehending  no  danger,  permit- 
ted his  followers  who  were  on  shore  to 
roam  in  quest  of  booty.  He  was  mis- 
taken. The  outraged  Indians  gathered 
stealthily  and  attacked  the  Spaniards 
furiously  with  poisoned  arrows.  Ojeda 
and  a few  soldiers  took  refuge  in  a small 
cabin,  where  all  but  himself  were  slain. 

He  was  a small  man  and  found  shelter 
from  a shower  of  arrows,  under  his  buck- 
ler, for  awhile,  when  he  sprang  from  his 
covert  like  a tiger  and  cutting  his  way 
through  the  multitude  uninjured,  he 
found  shelter  and  concealment  among 
the  matted  roots  of  mango  trees  at  the 
wooded  base  of  a mountain.  There  he 
was  found  by  his  followers,  almost  dead 
with  fatigue  and  hunger,  and  was  carried 
to  his  ship. 

At  this  juncture  Nicuesa  appeared 
with  his  squadron.  The  two  governors 
soon  agreed  upon  a plan  of  operations. 

Four  hundred  men  and  some  horses 
were  landed,  and  all  started  for  the  vil- 
lage of  the  Indians,  which  they  desolated  with  fire  and  sword.  No  quarter 
was  given  to  age  or  sex.  Men,  women  and  children  were  slain  with  wea- 
pons or  perished  in  the  burning  cabins.  Having  gathered  much  spoil,  the 
governors  parted,  Nicuesa  for  his  prescribed  province,  and  Ojeda  for  another 
part  of  his,  for  he  would  not  attempt  to  plant  a colony  on  the  scene  of  his 
disaster. 

The  wants  of  his  followers  caused  Ojeda  to  sail  for  Hayti  for  supplies. 
His  crew  rebelled  and  put  him  in  irons,  but  when  a great  storm  arose,  they 


— >-■— 

NATIVE  CUBANS  WORSHIPPING  A PICTURE. 


78 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  I. 


released  him  for  the  sake  of  mutual  safety.  The  vessel  stranded  on  the 
southern  shores  of  Cuba  which  was  then  under  native  rule,  and  a place  of 
refuge  for  the  unhappy  inhabitants  of  Hispaniola.  The  shipwrecked  mari- 
ners suffered  dreadfully  in  morasses,  and  more  than  half  of  them  perished. 
They  feared  the  natives  and  tried  to  avoid  them  ; but  hunger  made  the  sur- 
vivors bold,  and  a part  of  them,  led  by  Ojeda,  followed  a path  into  an  Indian 
village.  The  pagans  there  treated  the  suffering  Christians  with  the  most 
tender  care  and  unstinted  hospitality.  The  cacique  sent  men  with  pro- 
visions to  hunt  up  survivors  in  the  morasses ; and  when  Ojeda  departed,  he 
sent  guides  and  servants  to  conduct  the  Spaniard  and  his  companions  to  a 
part  of  the  island  nearest  Jamaica,  on  which  his  countrymen  had  lately 
settled.  To  that  island  Ojeda  was  taken,  and  thence  to  Hispaniola,  where 
he  died.  At  his  own  request  his  body  was  buried  at  the  portal  of  the  Cathe- 
dral of  San  Francisco.  He  chose  that  spot  that  every  one  who  passed  the 
portal  might  “ tread  upon  his  grave.”  So  he  sought  to  expiate  his  crimes 
by  such  post-mortem  or  after-death  humiliation. 

The  natural  kindness  of  the  Cubans  was  requited  the  following  year 
(1510)  in  the  usual  way.  The  Spaniards  of  Hayti,  inflamed  by  Ojeda’s 
account  of  the  wealth  of  Cuba,  conquered  it,  and  there  established  the 
horrid  social  and  political  system  which  had  made  Hispaniola  a land  of 
mourning  for  its  native  inhabitants.  The  pious  Ojeda  had  planted  a germ 
of  the  Church  in  Cuba,  and  so  gave  the  pagans  there,  as  he  believed,  an 
equivalent  for  any  disabilities  which  they  might  suffer  under  Spanish  rule. 
In  his  distress  he  had  made  a vow  to  the  Virgin,  that  if  she  should  deliver 
him  from  the  great  peril,  he  would  build  a chapel  in  the  first  Indian  village 
he  might  find,  and  over  its  altar  place  a precious  little  Flemish  painting  of 
the  Sacred  Mother,  which  he  carried  with  him,  and  leave  it  there.  He  did 
so.  The  character  and  attributes  of  the  Virgin,  as  the  mother  of  God  who 
rules  the  universe,  he  explained  to  the  simple-minded  cacique  and  his  people, 
who,  at  the  outset,  were  taught  to  revere  the  picture  as  a blessing  from  the 
skies.  They  kept  the  chapel  swept  clean  ; made  votive  offerings ; composed 
couplets  to  the  Virgin  and  sang  them  with  accompaniments  of  instrumental 
music,  as  they  danced  in  the  groves  around  the  sacred  place ; and  in  other 
similar  ways  they  commended  themselves  to  their  pious  conquerors  as  hope- 
ful converts  to  Christianity.  So  it  was  that  the  Christian  religion  was  intro- 
duced into  Cuba  more  than  three  centuries  and  a half  ago. 


CHAPTER  VII. 


THE  SPANIARDS  ON  THE  ISTHMUS  OF  DARIEN  — THEIR  CRUEL  TREATMENT  OF  THE  NATIVES — 
STORY  OF  THE  DISCOVERY  OF  THE  PACIFIC  OCEAN,  BY  VASCO  NUNEZ  DE  BALBOA — HE  TAKES 
POSSESSION  OF  IT  IN  THE  NAME  OF  THE  SPANISH  MONARCHS — TIDINGS  OF  PERU — DEATH  OF 
NUNEZ — CUBA  CONQUERED  — HERNANDO  CORTEZ — STORY  OF  THE  CONQUEST  OF  MEXICO — SUC- 
CESS AND  CRUELTIES  OF  THE  SPANIARDS  IN  MEXICO — CAPTURE  OF  ITS  CAPITAL — DESTRUC- 
TION OF  IDOLS — ATTEMPTED  CONQUEST  OF  FLORIDA  BY  NARVAEZ — DREADFUL  SUFFERINGS 
OF  THAT  LEADER  AND  HIS  FOLLOWERS— THEIR  DESTRUCTION. 

The  Pacific  Ocean,  whose  waters  lave  the  western  shores  of  our 
Republic  along  a distance,  as  a bird  flies,  of  sixteen  degrees  of 
latitude,  from  San  Diego  on  the  south  to  Cape  Flattery  on  the 
north,  was  discovered  by  one  of  the  Spanish  adventurers  who  accompanied 
the  expedition  under  Nicuessa,  to  the  coasts  of  Central  America.  That 
discoverer  was  Vasco  Nuuez  de  Balboa,  an  active  and  energetic  young  man 
of  noble  lineage  but  of  small  fortune,  who  crossed  the  Atlantic  to  the  West 
Indies  in  search  of  wealth,  in  the  year  1501.  On  Hispaniola  he  had  acquired 
a moderate  competence,  but  having  fallen  in  debt,  he  escaped  his  creditors 
by  being  carried  in  a cask  (supposed  to  contain  provisions)  on  board  a ship 
commanded  by  the  Bachelor  Enciso,  one  of  Nicuessa’s  lieutenants.  When 
the  vessel  was  fairly  out  at  sea,  Nuuez  came  from  his  cask.  Enciso,  aston- 
ished, and  angry  because  of  the  deception,  threatened  to  leave  him  on  the 
first  uninhabited  island  they  should  discover,  but  Nunez  succeeded  in  pacify- 
ing his  commander  and  gaining  his  friendship. 

At  Carthagena,  Enciso  was  joined  by  Pizarro,  who  had  been  left  by  Ojeda 
in  charge  of  the  remnant  of  his  colony.  With  that  remnant,  much  wasted 
by  sickness,  hunger,  and  the  arrows  of  the  natives,  he  was  making  his  way 
back  to  Hispaniola,  in  a brigantine.  He  was  persuaded  by  Enciso  to 
remain  and  return  with  him  to  the  place  of  Pizarro’s  departure.  They  were 
about  to  weigh  anchor  when  they  heard  of  a province  called  Zenu,  lying  at 
the  westward,  whose  mountains  they  were  told  abounded  with  the  precious 
metals,  and  where  there  was  an  ancient  cemetery  in  which,  for  centuries,  the 
Indians  had  been  buried  with  all  their  golden  ornaments.  Enciso  deter- 
mined to  hasten  to  that  country,  dig  treasures  from  the  mountains  and  sack 


8o 


OUR  COUNTRY, 


Book  1. 


the  sepulchres,  for  he  felt  no  compunction  at  the  idea  of  rifling  the  graves  of 
pagans.  The  whole  expedition  sailed  for  the  coast  of  Zenu,  where  they 
were  met  by  two  caciques  and  many  armed  followers,  who  opposed  the  inva- 
sion of  the  Spaniards.  Then  Enciso  caused  the  formula  used  by  Ojeda  to 
be  read  and  interpreted  to  the  caciques,  expounding  the  nature  of  God,  the 
supremacy  of  the  Pope  and  the  right  of  Roman  Catholic  sovereigns  to  all 
the  lands  by  virtue  of  a grant  from  the  occupant  of  the  papal  chair  at  Rome. 
The  caciques  courteously  listened  to  the  Spaniards,  and  then  one  of  them 
said:  “No  doubt  there  is  only  one  God,  but  the  Pope  must  have  been 
drunk  to  give  away  what  was  not  his  own,  and  the  King  of  Spain  must  have 
been  crazy  to  ask  from  him  what  belonged  to  others.  We  are  lords  of  these 
lands  and  want  no  other  sovereign,  and  if  this  king  should  come  to  take 
possession,  we  would  cut  off  his  head  and  put  it  on  a pole.” 

Enciso  attacked  and  defeated  the  Indians,  but  in  rifling  the  tombs  of 
their  ancestors,  he  did  not  find  sufficient  treasure  to  assuage  his  grief  at  the 
loss  of  two  of  his  men  who  had  perished  by  poisoned  arrows.  He  now  pro- 
ceeded to  the  seat  of  Ojeda’s  colony,  where  he  found  the  fort  and  cabins 
erected  there  in  ruins.  Nunez,  who  had  been  there  before,  with  another 
adventurer  guided  Enciso  to  a village  on  the  bank  of  a river  which  the 
natives  called  Darien,  and  there  the  seat  of  government  was  established, 
after  expelling  the  natives.  Discontents  soon  arose  among  the  Spaniards, 
and  Nunez  taking  advantage  of  them,  succeeded  in  having  Enciso  deposed 
and  himself  made  chief  magistrate.  When  Nicuessa  came  to  assume  chief 
command,  the  colonists,  under  the  influence  of  Nunez,  refused  their  alle- 
giance to  him,  and  the  usurper  became  governor.  He  expelled  Nicuessa 
from  the  country,  who,  with  a few  followers,  embarked  in  a crazy  vessel  for 
Hispaniola,  and  were  never  heard  of  afterwards.  Enciso,  seeing  no  chance 
for  the  recovery  of  his  power  whilst  the  energetic  usurper  lived,  returned  to 
Spain  with  feelings  of  revenge. 

Nuilez  was  soon  joined  by  two  Spaniards  who,  to  avoid  punishment,  had 
fled  from  Nicuessa’s  ship  and  found  refuge  and  the  kindest  treatment  with 
Careta,  the  cacique  of  Coyba.  They  requited  this  hospitality  of  the  pagan 
chief  by  advising  Nufiez  to  attack  Careta  in  his  dwelling,  where  he  would 
find  immense  booty.  The  governor  prepared  to  do  so.  One  of  the  Span- 
iards returned  to  Careta  to  assist  Nufiez  in  his  betrayal,  and  the  other  acted 
as  guide  to  the  invaders.  Nufiez  was  kindly  received  by  the  cacique  and  his 
people,  and  departed  with  presents.  He  halted  a little  way  from  the  village, 
and  when  the  Indians  were  all  asleep,  he  led  his  men  into  the  town  at  mid- 
night and  made  Careta,  his  wives  and  children  and  many  of  his  people 
captives.  With  them  and  a considerable  booty,  the  treacherous  Nufiez 


Chap.  VII. 


A WONDERFUL  REVELATION. 


8i 


returned  to  Darien,  when  the  good  cacique,  distressed  at  his  situation,  said : 
“ What  have  I done  to  thee  that  thou  shouldst  treat  me  thus  cruelly?  None 
of  thy  people  ever  came  to  my  land  that  were  not  fed,  and  sheltered,  and 
treated  with  loving-kindness.  When  thou  earnest  to  my  dwelling  did  I meet 
thee  with  a javelin  in  my  hand  ? Did  I not  set  meat  and  drink  before  thee, 
and  welcome  thee  as  a brother?  Set  me  free,  therefore,  with  my  family  and 
people,  and  we  will  remain  thy  friends.  We  will  supply  thee  with  pro- 
visions, and  reveal  to  thee  the  riches  of  the  land.  Dost  thou  doubt  my 
faith  ? Behold  my  daughter ! I give  her  to  thee  as  a pledge  of  my  friend- 
ship. Take  her  for  thy  wife,  and  be  assured  of  the  fidelity  of  her  family  and 
her  people.” 

Careta’s  daughter  was  young  and  beautiful.  Nuiiez  was  deeply  impressed 
by  her  charms.  He  granted  the  prayer  of  Careta,  took  his  daughter  to  be 
his  wife  according  to  the  usages  of  her  country,  and  becoming  very  fond  of 
her,  she  soon  acquired  great  influence  over  him.  He  assisted  Careta  in  wars 
against  his  enemies,  and  they  became  fast  friends.  Whilst  visiting  a power- 
ful cacique,  a friendly  neighbor  of  Careta,  Nuuez  was  told  by  the  son  of  that 
chief,  that  beyond  the  mountains  toward  which  he  pointed,  was  a mighty  sea 
that  could  be  discovered  from  the  summits  of  the  great  hills ; that  the  sea 
was  navigated  by  vessels  almost  as  large  as  the  Spanish  brigantines  and 
equipped  like  them  with  sails  and  oars ; that  the  rivers  which  flowed  down 
from  the  southern  slopes  of  the  mountains  abounded  with  gold,  and  that 
there  was  a country  further  southward,  bordering  on  that  great  sea,  where 
the  kings  ate  and  drank  out  of  golden  vessels,  and  that  gold  was  as  plentiful 
there  as  iron  was  among  the  Spaniards. 

This  information  seemed  like  a revelation  from  heaven  beaming  into  the 
mind  of  Nunez.  He  felt  a sudden  impulse  to  abandon  his  wayward  life,  and 
an  ambition  to  be  ranked  among  the  great  discoverers  of  his  age.  If  he 
could  first  see  that  mighty  ocean  and  the  precious  rivers  and  the  country 
where  its  kings  ate  and  drank  out  of  golden  vessels,  he  would  surely  be 
elevated  to  fame  and  fortune.  He  eagerly  inquired  how  the  summits  of  the 
mountains  and  the  borders  of  that  sea  might  be  reached.  “You  will  have 
to  fight  your  way  to  the  top  and  down  their  slopes,  and  through  the  plains 
beyond,  with  powerful  caciques  and  brave  warriors,”  said  the  young  man. 
“ You  will  need  at  least  a thousand  men,  armed  like  those  who  follow  you.” 

Nuflez  hastened  back  to  Darien  to  make  preparations  for  his  journey. 
His  thoughts  were  wholly  occupied  with  plans  for  the  discovery  of  the  great 
sea  beyond  the  mountains.  He  pondered  the  subject  when  awake  and  it 
gave  color  and  shape  to  his  night-dreams.  With  gold  of  the  value  of  fifteen 
thousand  crowns  which  he  sent  to  Don  Diego  Columbus,  in  Hispaniola,  to 


82 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  I. 


be  forwarded  to  the  king  as  the  royal  share  of  the  winnings  in  Central 
America,  he  sent  an  appeal  to  that  officer  for  aid  in  men  and  provisions,  to 
enable  Nunez  to  fight  his  way  across  the  isthmus.  Whilst  awaiting  an 
answer  he  made  several  expeditions  from  Darien,  and  everywhere  he  heard 
the  story  of  the  great  sea  beyond  the  mountains.  Finally,  one  hundred  and 
fifty  armed  men,  with  ample  supplies,  arrived  at  Darien  from  Hispaniola, 
and  Nunez  determined  to  march  for  the  mountain  summits.  With  one  hun- 
dred and  ninety  men  and  a number  of  bloodhounds,  he  made  his  way  to 

Coyba,  where  Careta  furnished  him  with 
guides  and  Indian  warriors ; and  on  the 
6th  of  September,  1513,  the  expedition 
set  off  for  the  great  hills  which  loomed 
up  in  the  southern  horizon.  They  fought 
their  way  victoriously,  spreading  terror 
among  the  natives  by  their  guns,  which, 
to  the  Indians,  seemed  like  demons  vom- 
iting lightning  and  thunder. 

At  ten  o’clock  in  the  morning  of 
the  26th  of  September,  Nunez  and  his 
followers  emerged  from  a thick  forest 
high  up  in  the  mountain  range.  Only 
sixty-seven  of  his  Spanish  soldiers  now  re- 
mained, who  were  able  to  climb  that  rug- 
ged height.  The  bald  rocky  summit  alone 
remained  to  be  ascended.  Commanding 
his  followers  to  halt,  and  not  a man  to 
stir  from  his  place,  he  climbed  to  that 
summit,  when  the  glorious  apparition  of  a 
broad  sea  burst  upon  his  vision.  It 
seemed  to  him  that  a new  and  unknown 
world,  separated  from  the  known  by  the 
lofty  mountain  barrier  on  which  he  stood,  had  been  unfolded  to  him.  It  was 
even  so.  Overcome  by  mingled  feelings  of  awe  and  joy,  he  fell  upon  his 
knees  and  fervently  poured  out  his  thanks  to  God  for  permitting  him  to  be 
the  first  of  Europeans  to  discover  that  mighty  sea.  He  then  shouted  to  his 
followers  to  come  up ; and  when  they  had  gathered  around  him  on  that 
breezy  height,  and  beheld  the  sea  stretching  out  interminably,  he  exhorted 
them  to  be  faithful  to  him  and  valorous  in  the  conquests  of  rich  heathen 
lands  before  them,  and  so  give  glory  to  God  and  their  king  and  win  riches 
for  themselves.  They  embraced  their  leader  and  made  vows  of  fidelity  to 


Chap.  VII. 


DISCOVERY  OF  THE  PACIFIC  OCEAN, 


83 


him  even  unto  death.  Then  they  chanted  the  Tc  Deum  Laudamus.  So  it 
was  that  the  Pacific  Ocean  was  discovered  by  Vasco  Nunez  de  Balboa.  It 
was  called  by  him  the  South  Sea,  but  Magellan,  who  sailed  into  it  through 
the  straits  which  bear  his  name,  a few  years  later,  called  it  the  Pacific  Ocean, 
because  its  waters  were  far  less  turbulent  than  those  of  the  Atlantic  which 
he  had  just  crossed. 

Nunez  now  called  all  of  his  followers  to  witness  the  fact  that  he  took 
possession  of  that  sea,  with  all  its  coasts  and  islands,  in  the  name  of  the 
sovereigns  of  Spain  ; and  the  notary  drew  up  a testimonial  to  that  effect, 
which  the  leader  and  his  sixty-seven  warriors  signed.  Then  a tree  was  cut 
down  and  wrought  into  a cross:  and  on  the  spot  where  Nufiez  first  saw  the 
ocean,  it  was  planted  with  solemn  religious  ceremonies,  whilst  the  Indians 
looked  on  in  wonder,  not  comprehending  the  meaning  of  the  sacred  symbol 
nor  the  significance  of  the  act.  It  marked  the  subjugation  of  their  land  by 
an  avaricious  race. 

Descending  the  mountains  on  their  southern  sides,  Nufiez  and  his  follow- 
ers made  their  way  to  the  sea.  As  the  tide  came  flowing  in  upon  the  sandy 
beach,  the  leader  took  a banner  on  which  the  Virgin  and  Child  were  painted, 
and  under  them  the  arms  of  Castile  and  Leon.  Then  drawing  his  sword 
and  throwing  his  buckler  over  his  shoulder,  he  marched  into  the  water  until 
it  covered  his  knees,  and  waving  his  banner  he  with  a loud  voice  again  pro- 
claimed that  he  took  possession  of  that  sea  and  its  islands,  in  the  name  of  the 
sovereigns  of  Spain.  A testimonial  to  that  effect  was  again  signed  by  all,  and 
the  conquest  was  regarded  as  complete.  After  that  Nufiez  made  voyages 
along  the  coast  of  the  Pacific,  and  heard  tidings  of  the  rich  kingdom  of 
Peru,  where  the  Incas  or  monarchs  ate  and  drank  out  of  vessels  of  gold. 
That  kingdom,  then  eminent  for  its  civilization,  was  afterward  conquered 
by  Pizarro,  with  circumstances  of  great  cruelty  and  wickedness.  Vasco 
Nufiez  de  Balboa,  falsely  accused  of  traitorous  intentions  by  his  jealous  rival 
and  successor,  Davila,  was  beheaded  at  Ada,  in  Central  America,  by  order 
of  that  officer,  in  1517,  when  he  was  in  the  forty-second  year  of  his  age. 

At  about  the  time  when  Central  America  was  first  colonized,  Cuba  was 
conquered  by  three  hundred  Spaniards  under  Diego  Velasquez,  who  had 
been  sent  from  Hispaniola  for  the  purpose,  by  Don  Diego  Columbus,  in 
1 51 1.  Hernando  Cortez,  destined  to  make  a conspicuous  figure  in  history, 
accompanied  the  expedition,  and  was  made  the  chief  magistrate  of  Santiago, 
the  Spanish  capital  of  the  island.  He  was  a handsome,  well  educated,  enter- 
prising young  man,  then  only  twenty-six  years  of  age,  and  had  just  married 
one  of  the  young  ladies  who  came  from  Spain  with  the  Vice-Queen  of  His- 
paniola. Cortez  soon  amassed  a considerable  fortune.  He  was  a cruel 


84 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  I. 


worker  of  the  natives  in  his  mines.  “ How  many  of  the  Indians  died  in 
extracting  gold  for  him,”  wrote  Las  Casas,  “ God  will  have  kept  a better 
account  than  I have.” 

Mexico  had  just  been  discovered  by  Juan  de  Grijalva.  Cortez  was  sent 
with  an  expedition  to  conquer  it.  He  set  out  from  Cuba  late  in  1518,  with 
five  hundred  and  fifty  Spaniards,  nearly  three  hundred  Indians,  a few 
negroes,  thirteen  horses  and  ten  brass  cannon,  in  ten  ships,  and  landed  on 

the  shore  of  Tabasco,  on  the  4th 
of  March,  1519.  There  he  had 
a battle  with  the  natives,  and  so 
terrified  them  with  his  horses 
and  great  guns,  that  they  fled  in 
dismay.  They  gave  him  as  a 
peace-offering,  a beautiful  Mexi- 
can slave  girl,  the  daughter  of 
a cacique,  whom  Cortez  caused 
to  be  baptized  with  the  name  of 
Donna  Marina.  She  was  very  in- 
telligent, and  bore  a conspicuous 
part  in  the  fortunes  of  Cortez. 
“Without  her  aid,”  says  Arthur 
Helps,  “ his  conquest  of  Mexico 
would  never  have  been  accom- 
plished.” 

Pushing  into  the  interior, 
Cortez  was  met  by  deputies  of 
Montezuma,  a native  emperor 
and  ruler  of  an  empire  which  had 
existed  full  three  hundred  years. 
The  emperor  hearing  of  the  ap- 
proach of  the  Spaniards,  sent  to 
inquire  what  was  their  errand.  “Has  your  king  any  gold?”  asked  Cortez_ 
The  deputies  answered,  “Yes.”  The  invader  replied:  “Let  him  send  it  to 
me,  for  I and  my  companions  have  a complaint — a disease  of  the  heart 
which  only  gold  can  cure.”  This  was  the  dreadful  malady  which  afflicted  all 
of  the  Spanish  discoverers  and  conquerors ; and  the  records  of  their  search 
for  the  remedy  have  stained  the  pages  of  history  with  pictures  of  the  most 
horrid  crimes. 

Cortez  took  possession  of  the  country  in  the  usual  form,  and  planted  the 
seeds  of  a colony  on  the  site  of  Vera  Cruz.  He  destroyed  his  ships  to  pre- 


RAISING  A MEMORIAL  CROSS. 


SPANIARDS  DESTROYING  MEXICAN  IDOLS. 


• u 


Chap.  VII. 


CORTEZ  IN  MEXICO. 


85 


vent  malcontents  among  his  followers  returning  in  them  ; and,  winning  to  his 
standard  several  native  tribes  who  had  suffered  from  Montezuma’s  tax- 
gatherers,  and  were  ready  to  rebel,  he  marched  toward  the  Mexican  capital 
in  the  month  of  August,  over  the  same  route  which  was  pursued  by  General 
Scott  and  his  conquering  army  more  than  three  hundred  years  afterward. 
He  fought  his  way  against  overwhelming  numbers  who  were  terrified  by  the 
flashing  of  the  armor  of  the  Spaniards  and  the  thunders  of  their  cannon. 
The  simple  people  regarded  the  invaders  as  divine  personages  and  made 
human  sacrifices  tot  placate  them ; but  the  avarice  and  ambition  of  the 
Spaniards  could  not  be  appeased  until  they  themselves  had  sacrificed  thou- 
sands of  human  beings  on  the  altar  of  their  lust. 

Discontented  or  alarmed,  Mexicans  continually  flocked  to  the  standard 
of  Cortez.  He  fought  and  conquered  the  powerful  Tlascalans  and  made 
them  his  allies;  and  early  in  November,  after  murdering  a large  number  of 
Cholulans  that  fell  into  his  hands,  he  appeared  before  the  City  of  Mexico — 
Mexico  the  superb,  sitting  on  the  bosom  of  a beautiful  lake  and  alive  with 
more  than  three  hundred  thousand  people.  With  him  were  six  thousand 
native  warriors  and  four  hundred  and  fifty  Spaniards.  Montezuma  and  his 
nobles  received  the  invaders  with  great  pomp  and  kindness.  A beautiful 
palace  was  assigned  to  Cortez  for  his  quarters.  Believing  that  a display  of 
power  would  greatly  increase  his  strength  and  influence,.that  leader  made  an 
attack  of  a few  Mexicans  upon  some  of  his  followers,  a pretext  for  seizing  the 
emperor  in  his  own  palace  and  confining  him  in  chains  in  that  of  his  guest, 
whilst  seventeen  of  the  offenders  were  burned  alive  before  the  gate  of  the 
imperial  residence.  Cortez  also  compelled  his  royal  prisoner  to  acknowledge 
himself  a vassal  of  Charles  the  Fifth,  then  Emperor  of  Spain,  and  to  induce 
his  nobles  and  tributary  caciques  to  do  likewise.  He  made  that  vassalage  a 
pretext  for  exacting  tribute,  and  in  the  name  of  his  royal  master,  Cortez 
extorted  from  the  fallen  monarch  gold  to  the  amount  of  two  hundred  thou- 
sand dollars. 

This  audacious  robber,  from  the  time  when  he  left  Cuba,  had  been  rebel- 
lious towards  his  superiors.  Another  adventurer,  named  Narvaez,  was  sent 
with  nine  hundred  men,  eighty  horses  and  a dozen  cannon  for  the  field,  to 
displace  the  rebel  and  send  him  back  to  Cuba.  When  Cortez  heard  of  the 
landing  of  his  appointed  successor,  he  hastened  with  a part  of  his  Spanish 
troops  and  native  warriors  toward  the  coast.  He  had  guessed  the  errand  of 
Narvaez,  and  at  once  attacked  him  in  his  camp.  Cortez  was  victorious. 
The  defeated  troops  joined  the  standard  of  the  victor,  and  all  marched  for 
the  City  of  Mexico,  where  the  great  leader  had  left  a small  garrison  under 
the  cruel  Alvarado.  The  inhabitants  there  had  risen  in  insurrection  because 


86 


OUR  COUNTRY 


R(^0K  I. 


Alvarado,  on  suspicion  of  meditated  rebellion,  had  caused  to  be  murdered 
six  hundred  unarmed  Mexican  noblemen  at  the  end  of  a solemn  festival. 
The  revolt  had  become  formidable  when  Cortez  returned,  and  in  an  attempt 
to  appease  his  people,  Montezuma  had  been  slain.  This  event  increased  the 
horror  and  indignation  of  the  Mexicans.  The  Spaniards  were  driven  out 
of  the  city,  and  their  rear-guard  were  cut  in  pieces.  They  fled  before  the 


VASCO  NUNEZ  DE  BALBOA  TAKING  POSSESSION  OF  THE  PACIFIC  OCEAN. 


exasperated  Mexicans,  for  the  space  of  six  days,  dreadfully  harassed  by 
their  pursuers.  Finally,  on  the  plain  of  Otamba,  the  fugitives  turned  upon 
the  Mexicans,  and  on  a hot  day  in  July,  1520,  a pitched  battle  was  fought 
there.  The  Spaniards  were  victorious,  and  the  fate  of  the  dynasty  of  Mon- 
tezuma was  sealed. 

Cortez  now  marched  to  Tlascala,  where  he  was  joined  by  an  auxiliary 


Chap.  VII. 


NARVAEZ  IN  FLORIDA. 


87 


native  army.  After  subduing  the  neighboring  provinces,  he  turned  his 
forces  toward  the  City  of  Mexico.  The  siege  which  ensued  was  one  of  the 
most  remarkable  recorded  in  history.  It  continued  seventy-five  days,  when, 
on  the  13th  of  August,  1521,  the  city  was  captured  by  the  Spaniards  with 
immense  slaughter  of  the  inhabitants.  More  human  beings  were  that  day 
offered  upon  the  altar  of  ambition  than  had  been  slain  in  sacrifice  before  the 
Mexican  gods  in  the  space  of  ten  years.  The  victory  over  the  Mexicans 
was  complete ; the  conquest  of  Mexico  in  less  than  two  years,  was  a fact 
that  had  passed  into  history. 

Impelled  by  his  own  religious  zeal  and  prompted  by  the  priests  in  his 
train,  Cortez  at  once  proceeded  to  further  humiliate,  horrify  and  exasperate 
the  subdued  people,  by  making  a clean  sweep,  with  the  besom  of  destruction, 
over  the  idols  and  temples  of  the  empire.  In  the  great  square  in  Mexico, 
the  conqueror  and  his  followers,  with  their  garments  stained  with  the  blood 
of  their  fellow-creatures,  devoutly  sang  the  Te  Dcitm,  and  prostrating  them- 
selves before  the  image  of  the  Blessed  Virgin  which  they  had  set  up,  they 
reverently  thanked  God  for  permitting  them  to  be  the  humble  instruments 
in  annihilating  image-worship  and  in  staying  the  horrid  rites  of  human  sacri- 
fice. Such  was  the  spirit  and  temper  of  the  age  in  which  they  lived.  So 
was  introduced  Christianity  into  Me.xico. 

Pamphilio  de  Narvaez,  who  was  sent  to  Mexico  to  supersede  Cortez,  had 
extraordinary  adventures  afterwards  as  a discoverer  in  Florida.  He  was  a 
man  of  wealth,  tall  and  muscular  in  form,  commanding  in  appearance,  with 
a red  beard,  a fine  voice,  and  was  an  e.xpert  horseman.  He  went  to  Spain 
to  complain  of  Cortez,  where  he  remained  several  years,  and  finally,  in  June, 
1527,  he  sailed  from  San  Lucar,  under  the  authority  of  the  monarch,  with 
six  hundred  men  in  five  vessels,  commissioned  to  conquer  and  govern 
Florida.  After  long  detention  in  San  Domingo  and  Cuba,  he  sailed  from 
the  latter  island  with  four  hundred  men  and  eighty  horses,  accompanied  by 
Cabega  de  Vaca,  as  treasurer  of  the  expedition  and  a sort  of  deputy  gover- 
nor. With  less  than  four  hundred  men  and  only  forty-two  horses,  he  landed 
on  the  west  side  of  the  present  Tampa  Bay,  on  the  13th  of  April,  1528. 
The  Indians  fled  from  their  wigwams  or  rude  huts  ; and  when  all  of  his  fol- 
lowers, with  the  horses,  were  on  the  shore,  Narvaez  raised  the  standard  of 
Spain,  and  with  the  usual  formula  took  possession  of  the  country  in  the 
name  of  his  monarch.  His  officers  then  took  an  oath  of  allegiance  to  him 
as  their  governor ; and  had  he  known  how  potent  kind  treatment  would  have 
been  in  securing  the  friendship  of  the  Indians,  he  might  have  ruled  the  prov- 
ince in  peace  and  good  will  and  with  abundant  prosperity.  Instead  of  pur- 
suing this  wise  course,  he  relied  upon  force  and  cruelty  to  effect  the  subjuga- 

7 


88 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Hook  I. 


tion  of  the  natives.  The  consequences  were  disastrous  to  him  and  those 
who  came  after  him.  His  cruel  mutilation  of  a captive  chief  after  his  first 
hostile  encounter  with  the  natives,  by  causing  his  nose  to  be  cut  off;  and  his 
making  Cuban  bloodhounds  tear  in  pieces  the  mother  of  the  cacique  in  the 
presence  of  her  children,  created  such  intense  horror  and  hatred  among 
the  people  in  all  that  Gulf  region,  that  vengeance  followed  the  footsteps  of 


THANKSGIVING  BEFORE  THE 


IMAGE  OF  THE  VIRGIN. 


the  Spaniards  closely  and  implacably,  with  the  tenacity  of  their  own  savage 
dogs. 

Narvaez  marched  with  high  hopes  from  Tampa,  to  explore  the  country, 
directing  his  ships  to  sail  along  the  coasts  for  the  .same  purpose.  He  had 
been  told  that  not  far  off  he  would  find  Apalachee,  a city  and  country  of 


Chap.  V^ll. 


SUFFERINGS  OF  NARVAEZ  AND  HIS  MEN. 


89 


plenty.  He  crossed  the  Suwanee  high  up,  and  then  the  Ocktockonee. 
Every  day  he  expected  to  come  upon  a city  sparkling  with  wealth — filled 
with  gold  and  food,  like  those  of  Mexico  and  Peru  ; and  palaces  of  caciques 
with  magnificent  courts,  and  a country  in  which  they  might  riot  in  luxury 
won  by  plunder  as  Cortez  and  Pizarro  had  done.  Alas ! it  was  an  idle 
dream.  All  before  him  were  but  creations  of  imagination  ; all  behind  him 
were  the  dark  realities  of  disappointment.  The  captives  whom  Narvaez 
forced  to  act  as  guides,  led  the  invaders  into  dark  forests,  tangled  morasses, 
and  arid  sands.  Men  and  horses  suffered  dreadfully  from  the  pangs  of 
hunger.  When  a horse  died  from  starvation,  these  cavaliers  were  compelled 
to  eat  it  to  avoid  starvation  themselves.  At  every  rood  they  met  hostility 
and  treachery ; and  when  they  came  to  Apalachee,  instead  of  a splendid  city 
and  fields  and  granaries  burdened  with  food,  they  found  a village  of  forty 
thatched  huts  in  the  midst  of  scattered  fields  of  growing  maize  or  Indian 
corn.  There  were  no  roads  nor  bridges,  nor  other  evidences  of  civilization  ; 
and  poverty  was  the  common  aspect  of  nature  and  people.  The  men  had 
fled,  but  soon  returned  for  their  women  and  children  with  offers  of  friend- 
ship. These  offers  were  accepted,  and  all  might  have  been  well  had  not 
Narvaez,  in  imitation  of  Cortez  in  Mexico,  seized  the  principal  cacique  of 
the  Apalacheeans,  and  held  him  as  a hostage  for  the  good  behaviour  of  his 
people.  Narvaez  believed  this  spirited  act  would  awe  the  inhabitants;  but 
he  had  a more  warlike  people  to  deal  with  than  the  soft  Aztecs  of  Mexico. 
They  flew  to  arms  to  avenge  the  wrong ; attacked  the  Spaniards  with  great 
fury ; burned  their  own  houses  that  they  might  not  give  shelter  to  their  ene- 
mies, and  then  fled  to  their  cornfields  and  the  forests  with  their  families. 

Narvaez  was  now  on  the  Appalachicola  River.  He  learned  from  the 
captive  cacique  that  he  was  in  the  richest  region  of  that  whole  country ; that 
forests  and  lakes  and  morasses  everywhere  abounded,  and  that  he  would  be 
met  at  every  step  by  expert  and  hostile  bowmen.  He  told  him  that  nine 
days  journeying  southward  would  bring  him  to  the  sea-coast  and  a better 
country,  and  assured  him  that  gold  had  never  been  found  in  the  region 
which  he  had  penetrated.  Misfortune  made  Narvaez  listen  patiently  to 
these  discouraging  words,  and  he  and  his  followers  turned  their  faces  toward 
the  sea.  Their  sufferings  on  that  march  were  dreadful.  The  country  was 
broken  into  lakes,  swamps,  morasses  and  forests.  They  were  compelled  to 
wade  through  water  sometimes  waist  deep  and  work  their  way  through 
tangled  vines  and  bristling  brambles,  every  moment  exposed  to  the  arrows 
of  expert  bowmen  who  hung  upon  their  flanks  and  rear.  When  they 
reached  the  sea — the  Gulf  of  Mexico — at  near  the  mouth  of  the  Appalachi- 
cola, sickness  was  rapidly  wasting  Narvaez  and  nearly  all  his  men.  They 


90 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book.  I. 


had  devoured  for  food  all  but  one  of  their  horses,  and  they  were  in  the  most 
pitiable  plight.  All  thoughts  of  gold  and  dominion  had  left  their  minds, 
and  they  stood  upon  that  shore,  with  no  signs  of  their  fleet  visible,  the 
victims  of  a cruel  policy  of  their  own.  They  had  now  no  thought  but  the 
question.  How  shall  we  save  our  lives? 

There  was  no  other  way  of  escape  from  death  than  by  the  sea.  Sur- 
mounting the  greatest  difficulties,  they  built  some  frail  boats,  and  provisioned 
them  with  Indian  corn.  With  this,  and  some  water  in  half-tanned  horse- 
hides,  they  embarked,  and  coasted  toward  the  Mississippi.  Their  food  and 
water  soon  failed,  and  their  sufferings  were  horrible.  One  by  one  they  died, 
when  a storm — a “ norther  ” — struck  and  dispersed  the  flotilla.  The  boat 
that  bore  Treasurer  de  Vaca  was  stranded  on  an  island,  and  he  and  his  com- 
panions were  kindly  treated  by  the  Indians.  Narvaez  was  never  heard  of 
afterward.  De  Vaca  seems  to  have  been  the  only  Spaniard  who  survived 
and  returned  to  Spain.  After  eight  years  of  captivity  amongst  the  Indians, 
he  made  his  way  on  foot,  from  tribe  to  tribe,  until  he  had  crossed  the  con- 
tinent, and  arrived  at  a port  occupied  by  his  countrymen  on  the  Gulf  of 
California.  Thence  he  made  his  way  to  Spain,  where  he  appeared  at  the 
court  as  one  risen  from  the  dead.  His  narrative  was  soon  published,  and  it 
was  read  with  an  appetite  such  as  the  most  marvelous  romance  creates.  His 
revelations  of  the  heroism  of  Narvaez  made  the  deeds  of  that  adventurer 
compare  favorably  with  those  of  Cortez  and  Pizarro.  Narvaez  had  not  only 
fought  hostile  men  with  a handful  of  followers,  but  he  had  fought  the 
climate  and  topography  of  Florida.  Cortez  had  struggled  in  a salubrious 
climate  seven  thousand  feet  above  the  sea,  and  Pizarro  had  marched  into  the 
country  of  the  Incas  of  Peru  over  a splendid  highway  built  by  that  extra- 
ordinary people  along  the  summits  of  the  Andes.  Narvaez  was  never,  prob- 
ably, one  hundred  feet  above  tide-water,  in  Florida,  and  much  of  the  time 
he  was  breathing  the  deadly  malaria  of  the  Everglades. 


CHAPTER  VIII. 


DE  SOTO  COMMISSIONED  TO  CONQUER  AND  GOVERN  FLORIDA — HIS  EXPERIENCE  IN  THE  DOMINIONS 
OF  A CREEK  CHIEF — A FRIENDLY  INDIAN  QUEEN  ON  THE  SAVANNAH  RIVER — DE  SOTO’S 
TREACHERY — HIS  KIND  RECEPTION  IN  THE  COOSA  COUNTRY — DE  SOTO’s  PERFIDY — HIS  MARCH 
THROUGH  ALABAMA — DE  SOTO  IS  OUTGENERALLED  BY  THE  EMPEROR  TUSCALOOSA — TERRIBLE 
ENCOUNTER  WITH  THE  ALABAMIANS  AT  THEIR  CAPITAL  — DE  SOTO  GOES  FURTHER  INTO  THE 
INTERIOR — FATAL  ENCOUNTERS  WITH  THE  BARBARIANS — HE  DISCOVERS  THE  MISSISSIPPI 
RIVER — HE  CROSSES  THAT  STREAM  AND  MARCHES  TOWARD  THE  ROCKY  MOUNTAINS — DE 
SOTO  RETURNS  TO  THE  MISSISSIPPI  AND  DIES — HIS  FOLLOWERS  REACH  MEXICO — DEATH  OF 
HIS  WIFE. 

The  hideous  story  of  the  disastrous  adventures  of  Narvaez  and  his 
companions  in  Florida  seems  sufficient  to  have  deterred  others 
from  undertaking  further  enterprises  among  the  fierce  Apalachians, 
either  for  gold  or  dominion.  But  the  effect  was  otherwise.  Spanish  chiv- 
alry had  been  stimulated,  and  thirst  for  glory  had  been  intensified  by  the 
valorous  exploits  of  the  discoverers  and  conquerors  in  America,  and  the 
more  hazardous  the  performance  the  greater  was  the  renown.  The  very 
difficulties  in  the  way  seemed  to  sharpen  desire;  and  when  Hernando  de 
Soto,  who,  as  one  of  the  conquerors  of  Peru  under  Pizarro,  had  returned  to 
Spain  with  great  wealth  and  reputation,  proposed  an  expedition  for  the  con- 
quest of  Florida,  hundreds  of  young  men,  the  flower  of  the  Spanish  and 
Portuguese  nobility,  flocked  to  his  standard. 

De  Soto  longed  to  rival  Cortez  and  Pizarro  in  the  brilliancy  of  his  deeds. 
He  had  appeared  at  the  court  of  Charles  the  Fifth  in  great  splendor,  as  one 
of  the  richest  men  in  Spain,  and  had  been  favorably  received.  He  had 
lately  married  Isabella  de  Bobadilla,  a scion  of  one  of  the  most  renowned  of 
the  Castilian  families,  and  his  influence  at  court  was  thereby  strengthened ; 
and  when  he  offered  to  undertake  the  conquest  of  Florida  at  his  own 
expense,  the  permission  of  his  sovereign  was  readily  given.  Charles  also 
commissioned  him  governor  of  Cuba,  from  which  island  he  would  sail  for 
Florida,  and  made  him  captain-general  of  the  provinces  which  he  might 
secure  by  conquest  on  the  main. 

De  Soto  was  of  gentle  birth  ; of  known  pre-eminence  as  a soldier ; wise 
in  council ; prudent  in  action  ; brave  to  rashness  in  conflict,  and  his  reputa- 


92 


OUR  COUNTRY, 


Book  I. 


tion  was  without  blemish.  In  person,  he  was  elegant;  in  deportment, 
courtly;  as  a horseman,  expert;  and  in  age,  thirty-seven — the  prime  of 
young  manhood.  With  these  qualities  and  his  generous  offer  to  aid  young 
cavaliers  who  needed  assistance  in  equipping  themselves  in  accordance  with 
their  rank  and  position,  he  soon  gathered  a band  of  si.x  hundred  brilliant 
adventurers.  Some  of  the  wealthier  came  in  gorgeous  suits  of  armor,  rich 
dresses  and  trains  of  servants.  Many  of  them  had  sold  houses,  lands  and 
vineyards  to  enable  them  to  embark  in  the  enterprise,  for  De  Soto  believed 
there  was  more  gold  in  Florida  than  in  Mexico  and  Peru  together,  and  had 
said  so. 

With  this  brilliant  armament,  and  accompanied  by  his  beautiful  young 
wife  and  other  noble  ladies,  De  Soto  embarked  at  San  Lucar  de  Barrameda, 
at  the  mouth  of  the  Guadalquiver,  early  in  April,  1538,  a little  less  than 
eleven  years  after  Narvaez  sailed  on  his  unfortunate  expedition  from  the 
same  port.  His  armament  consisted  of  seven  large  and  three  smaller  vessels  : 
and  the  flag-ship  was  the  San  Ckristoval,  of  eight  hundred  tons  burthen. 
Their  departure  was  cheered  by  the  braying  of  trumpets  and  the  shouts  of  a 
great  multitude ; and  the  fleet  was  followed  by  twenty-six  merchant  vessels 
bound  for  Mexico. 

So  bountifully  had  De  Soto  furnished  his  ships  with  stores,  that  every 
man  was  supplied  with  double  rations;  and  in  their  enjoyment  of  plenty 
and  wastefulness,  they  almost  adored  their  munificent  leader.  Gayety  and 
festivity — music,  dancing  and  feasting — prevailed  on  board  the  San  Chris- 
toval  during  that  sunny  voyage,  in  which  richly-dressed  ladies  were  con- 
spicuous, with  handsome  young  pages  to  do  their  bidding,  especially  on  mild 
and  brilliant  moonlit  evenings  within  the  tropic  of  Cancer.  All  were  joyous, 
for  they  thought  they  were  on  the  way  to  an  earthly  paradise.  At  near  the 
close  of  May  the  ships  all  entered  Cuban  waters.  The  bright  sea-pageant 
vanished,  for  then  the  real  business  of  the  expedition  was  begun  in  earnest. 
There  De  Soto  occupied  a whole  year  in  arranging  affairs  of  government 
and  preparing  for  the  great  enterprise  in  view. 

Towards  the  middle  of  May,  1539,  De  Soto  sailed  from  Havana  with  a 
fleet  of  nine  vessels,  large  and  small,  and  about  a thousand  followers  with 
many  horses,  cattle,  mules,  and  a herd  of  swine.  He  left  public  affairs  in 
Cuba  in  the  hands  of  his  wife  and  the  lieutenant-governor,  where,  for  several 
days,  he  had  given  feasts  and  entertainments  such  as  might  be  appropriate 
after  a great  conquest.  A vessel  had  been  sent  to  Florida  to  find  a safe 
harbor  and  to  kidnap  some  Indians  to  act  as  guides  and  interpreters.  So 
prepared,  De  Soto  bade  Isabella  de  Bobadilla  farewell,  on  board  his  ship, 
with  the  full  expectation  of  returning  speedily  with  the  rich  fruits  of  a 


Chap.  VIII. 


DE  SOTO  IN  FLORIDA. 


93 


glorious  conquest.  Alas ! clouds  soon  gathered  in  the  firmament  of  his 
hopes,  and  his  brilliant  dream  was  never  realized.  His  voyage  was  pleasant ; 
and  when  the  armament  anchored  in  Tampa  Bay,  near  where  Narvaez  had 
landed,  delicious  perfumes  came  from  the  shores,  for  all  Florida  was  in 
bloom.  It  was  the  30th  of  May. 

Had  De  Soto  been  wiser  than  the  other  conquerors,  and  conciliated  the 
Indians  by  friendly  acts,  all  might  have  been  well.  But  he  was  no  wiser 
than  they.  He  sent  armed  men  to  capture  natives,  that  he  might  obtain 
knowledge  of  the  country,  and  so  he  imitated  his  predecessors.  The  savages 
had  learned  to  be  cautious  from  their  contact  with  Narvaez,  and  they  were 
too  wily  in  their  movements,  and  too  expert  with  the  bow  and  arrow,  to  be 
taken. 

In  one  of  their  little  excursions  the  Spaniards  were  startled  as  they  were 
charging  upon  a band  of  Indians,  by  the  voice  of  a man  crying  out  in  the 
Castilian  tongue:  “I  am  a Christian!  I am  a Christian!  Slay  me  not!” 

The  stout  trooper  stayed  his  lance,  lifted  the  supplicant  to  his  horse,  and 
carried  him  to  the  main  encampment.  The  Castilian  in  savage  guise  proved 
to  be  Jean  Ortiz,  a native  of  Seville,  who  had  been  a captive  among  the 
Indians  for  several  years.  He  had  heard  of  the  landing  of  the  Spaniards, 
and  had  hastened  to  meet  them  ; and  he  was  a godsend  to  De  Soto  because 
he  was  a valuable  interpreter.  The  governor  furnished  Ortiz  with  clothes 
and  a horse,  and  attached  him  to  his  personal  staff. 

De  Soto  was  now  ready  to  enter  upon  the  conquest  of  Florida.  His 
troops  were  clad  in  coats  of  steel  to  repel  arrows,  and  bore  breast-plates 
and  helmets  of  the  same  metal.  They  had  strong  shields,  swords,  lances, 
arquebuses  (a  kind  of  rude  short  guns),  cross-bows  and  one  cannon.  The 
cavaliers  were  mounted  on  one  hundred  and  thirteen  horses.  Savage  blood- 
hounds from  Cuba  were  the  allies  of  the  Spaniards,  and  the  Castilians  were 
plentifully  supplied  with  iron  neck-collars,  handcuffs  and  chains  for  their 
captives.  With  these  instruments  of  cruelty,  a drove  of  swine,  many  cattle 
and  mules,  and  accompanied  by  mechanics,  priests,  inferior  clergy  and  monks 
with  sacerdotal  robes,  holy  relics,  images  of  the  Virgin  and  sacramental 
bread  and  wine  wherewith  to  make  Christians  of  the  conquered  pagans,  De 
Soto  began  his  march  in  June,  1539.  From  the  outset  he  was  met  by  the 
most  vigorous  opposition.  In  narrow  defiles  and  other  exposed  places,  he 
and  his  followers  were  assailed  by  clouds  of  arrows  from  the  hands  of  a mul- 
titude of  natives  who  had  been  made  intensely  revengeful  because  of  the 
cruelties  of  Narvaez  and  his  men.  They  had  resolved  to  fight  the  invaders 
until  not  one  should  be  left  upon  the  soil.  Cruelty  was  met  by  cruelty. 
When  a Spaniard  was  captured,  he  was  mercilessly  slaughtered.  The  cap 


94 


r 

OUR  COUNTRY. 


B(J0k  1. 


tive  Indians  were  loaded  with  chains  and  made  beasts  of  burden,  without 
regard  to  age  or  sex.  The  antagonism  of  the  races  was  fearful.  When 
De  Soto,  hoping  to  conciliate  Acuera,  a powerful  Muscogee  or  Creek  chief, 
whose  territory  he  had  entered,  and  invited  the  cacique  to  a friendly  inter- 
view, he  received  this 
haughty  reply : 

“ Others  of  your 
accursed  race  have,  in 
years  past,  disturbed 
our  peaceful  shores. 
They  have  taught  me 
what  you  are.  What 
is  your  employment  ? 
To  wander  about  like 
vagabonds  from  land 
to  land ; to  rob  the 
the  poor ; to  betray 
the  confiding;  to 
murder  the  defence- 
less in  cold  blood. 
No!  with  such  a peo- 
ple I want  neither 
peace  nor  friendship. 
War  — never-ending, 
exterminating  war — 
is  all  I ask.  You 
boast  yourselves  to  be 
valiant  — and  so  you 
may  be  ; but  my  faith- 
ful warriors  are  not 

THE  CAPTIVE  INDIANS. 

less  brave  ; and  of  this 
you  shall  one  day 

have  proof,  for  I have  sworn  to  maintain  an  unsparing  conflict  while  one 
white  man  remains  in  my  borders ; not  openly  in  the  battle-field,  though 
even  thus  we  fear  not  to  meet  you,  but  by  stratagem,  ambush,  and  midnight 
surprisal.” 

In  reply  to  a demand  that  he  should  yield  obedience  to  the  emperor, 
Acuera  as  haughtily  said : “ I am  king  in  my  own  land,  and  will  never 
become  the  vassal  of  a mortal  like  myself.  Vile  and  pusillanimous  is  he  who 
submits  to  the  yoke  of  another  when  he  may  be  free ! As  for  me  and  my 


Chap.  VIll. 


DE  SOTO  AND  A YOUNG  QUEEN. 


95 


people  we  prefer  death  to  the  loss  of  liberty,  and  the  subjugation  of  our 
country !”  De  Soto  pressed  his  suit  for  a friendly  interview,  but  was  always 
answered  by  the  cacique  that  he  had  given  him  all  the  reply  he  had  to  make. 

De  Soto  remained  twenty  days  in  the  dominions  of  Acuera,  continually 
suffering  from  the  enmity  of  that  cacique.  A Spaniard  could  not  go  a hun- 
dred paces  from  his  camp  without  danger  of  being  shot,  and  his  severed 
head  carried  in  triumph  on  a pike  to  the  presence  of  the  chief.  In  that  way 
fourteen  Castilians  perished,  and  many  were  wounded.  “ Keep  on  ! robbers 
and  traitors !”  said  Acuera.  “ In  my  province  and  in  Apalachee  you  will  be 
treated  as  you  deserve.  We  will  quarter  and  hang  up  every  captive  on  the 
highest  tree!”  And  they  did  so.  In  open  fight  the  Spaniards  were  always 
victors,  but  in  ambush  and  skulking,  the  Indians  were  expert  and  fearfully 
dangerous. 

Cutting  his  way  through  hostile  tribes,  De  Soto  reached  the  fertile  region 
of  Tallahassee,  where  he  wintered.  An  e.xpedition  which  sailed  westward  in 
his  ships,  to  explore  the  coasts,  returned  in  February  with  a report  that  the 
skeletons  of  the  men  and  horses  of  Narvaez’s  party,  who  had  perished  at  St. 
Marks,  the  place  of  that  adventurer’s  last  embarkation,  had  been  discovered  ; 
also  the  sheltered  bay  of  Pensacola.  The  commander  of  the  vessels  was 
ordered  to  return  to  Cuba  immediately,  and  thence  convey  provisions  and 
other  supplies  to  Pensacola,  whilst  De  Soto  should  march  across  the  country 
to  the  same  point.  For  this  purpose  the  governor  broke  up  his  winter 
encampment  in  March,  but  being  told  that  gold  abounded  in  the  north,  he 
first  went  in  that  direction  as  far  as  Silver  Bluff,  on  the  Savannah  River. 
On  the  opposite  side  of  the  stream  (in  Barnwell  District,  S.  C.)  lived  an 
Indian  “ queen,”  young,  beautiful  and  a maiden,  who  ruled  over  a large 
extent  of  country.  In  a richly  wrought  canoe  filled  with  shawls  and  skins, 
and  other  presents,  the  dusky  cacica  glided  across  the  river,  and  with  kind 
words  welcomed  the  governor  and  offered  him  her  services.  Presents  were 
exchanged.  A magnificent  string  of  pearls  was  upon  her  neck.  This  she 
drew  over  her  head  and  hung  it  around  the  neck  of  De  Soto  as  a token  of 
her  regard.  Then  she  invited  him  and  his  followers  to  cross  over  to  her 
village.  In  canoes  and  on  log-rafts  they  passed  the  stream,  and  encamping 
in  the  shadows  of  mulberry  trees,  they  soon  received  a bountiful  supply  of 
turkeys  and  venison.  There  they  remained  until  early  in  May,  when  they 
departed,  De  Soto  requiting  the  hospitality  of  the  royal  maiden  with 
treachery.  He  carried  her  away  a prisoner,  and  kept  her  near  his  person  as 
a hostage  for  the  good  behavior  of  her  people  towards  the  Spaniards.  She 
finally  escaped  and  returned  to  her  home,  a bitter  enemy  of  the  perfidious 
white  people. 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Buck  I. 


96 


The  Spaniards  marched  to  the  headwaters  of  the  Savannah,  in  Haber- 
sham county,  when  they  turned  their  faces  westward,  and  crossing  northern 
Georgia,  through  the  picturesque  Cherokee  country,  went  over  the  Oosta- 
naula  near  its  confluence  with  the  Etowah,  and  entered  the  large  village  of 
Chiaha,  on  the  site  of  modern  Rome.  There  they  were  received  with  the 
kindest  hospitality  by  the  young  chief,  who  gave  the  intruders  plenty  of 
food  and  to  their  leader  a string  of  pearls  two  yards  in  length,  each  pearl  as 

large  as  a filbert.  The  streams 
in  that  region  then  abounded 
in  the  pearl-bearing  mussel. 

For  thirty  days  the  Span- 
iards remained  at  Chiaha. 
Then  marching  eastward,  they 
entered  northeastern  Alabama, 
and  were  soon  in  the  beautiful 
and  fertile  Coosa  country. 
They  were  everywhere  kindly 
received  and  bountifully  fed  by 
the  inhabitants.  Cultivated 
fields  stretched  out  on  every 
side,  and  granaries  were  filled 
with  corn.  Plum  trees  abound- 
ed, resembling  those  of  Spain, 
and  grapes  hung  in  delicious 
clusters  from  vines  that  climbed 
the  tall  trees.  It  was  now  late 
in  J uly,  1 540.  When  the  army 
came  in  sight  of  the  capital  of 
Coosa,  the  chief,  a young  man 
less  than  thirty  years  of  age, 
borne  upon  a cushioned  chair 
on  the  shoulders  of  four  men, 
met  him  in  the  remote  out- 

THE  CHIEF  OF  THE  COOSA  INDIANS.  follOWed  by 

a thousand  warriors,  tall,  active 
and  well-proportioned,  with  scanty  garments  and  plumed  heads.  The 
cacique  was  clad  in  a mantle  of  marten  skins  thrown  gracefully  over  his 
shoulder,  and  on  his  head  was  a diadem  of  brilliant  feathers.  Musicians 
attended  him,  singing  songs  and  playing  flutes ; and  the  whole  procession 
was  almost  as  gorgeous  as  that  of  the  Spaniards  in  their  glittering  armor. 


Chap.  VIII. 


THE  EMPEROR  TUSCALOOSA. 


97 


The  cacique  received  De  Soto  with  joy,  set  apart  the  royal  house  for  his 
accommodation,  and  dined  with  the  governor  every  day.  Finally,  he 
besought  De  Soto  to  found  a Spanish  colony  anywhere  in  his  dominions. 
The  governor,  charmed  with  the  delicious  climate,  would  have  done  so  but 
for  the  avaricious  desire  to  find  the  great  gold  region  which,  he  beheved,  was 
not  far  off.  He  declined  the  generous  offer,  with  polite  thanks,  at  the  same 
time  holding  the  chief  as  a hostage  for  the  double  purpose  of  securing  the 
friendly  offices  of  his  people  and  extorting  provisions  and  slaves.  The 
natives  were  enraged  at  the  indignity  offered  their  sovereign,  and  fleeing  to 
the  woods  prepared  for  war.  The  Spaniards  pursued  them,  and  returned 
with  men  and  women  in  chains,  many  of  whom  they  carried  off  as  slaves 
when  they  departed  in  August.  So,  at  every  step,  hospitality  was  repaid  by 
injustice  and  cruelty.  The  Spaniards  by  their  conduct  justly  earned  the 
fate  which  finally  overtook  them. 

De  Soto  continued  his  march  through  the  beautiful  regions  of  Alabama, 
taking  with  him  the  cacique  of  Coosa,  as  far  as  the  great  town  of  Tallase, 
where  he  was  dismissed.  Pushing  southward,  the  Spaniards  approached  the 
temporary  residence  of  Tuscaloosa,  the  renowned  chief  known  as  the  Black 
Warrior,  who  was  gigantic  in  stature,  and  the  head  of  the  Mobilian  Indians. 
They  found  him  seated  on  a commanding  eminence  upon  a cushioned  seat 
with  beautiful  mats  under  his  feet  and  surrounded  by  numerous  attendants. 
He  was  forty  years  of  age,  a head  taller  than  any  of  his  warriors,  with  a 
handsome  face  of  grave  and  severe  aspect.  Lord  of  many  tribes,  he  was 
feared  by  his  neighbors  and  subjects;  and  his  influence  was  widely  spread 
over  the  region  of  the  Alabama  River  to  that  of  the  Mississippi.  He 
received  De  Soto  with  haughty  courtesy ; and  when  the  governor  ordered 
one  of  his  largest  pack-horses  to  be  brought  for  the  use  of  the  giant  chief- 
tain, the  latter  mounted  with  sullenness  and  evident  reluctance.  He  and 
De  Soto  rode  side  by  side,  and  it  was  soon  evident  to  Tuscaloosa  that  he 
was  a prisoner  of  the  Spaniards  after  the  manner  of  other  caciques  who  had 
been  held  as  hostages.  They  crossed  the  Alabama  a short  distance  below 
Selma,  and  passed  down  the  right  bank  of  that  stream  in  the  direction  of 
the  sea.  De  Soto  now  discovered  signs  which  made  him  uneasy.  The 
deference  which  had  been  paid  to  him  since  he  left  the  Apalachee  country 
had  assured  him  that  the  conquest  of  Florida  would  be  an  easy  matter. 
Indeed,  he  had  regarded  it  as  already  accomplished.  But  the  demeanor  of 
Tuscaloosa  caused  him  to  doubt.  The  chief  was  in  close  and  continual 
consultation  with  his  principal  followers,  and  was  constantly  sending  runners 
to  his  capital,  with  messages,  telling  the  Spaniards  that  he  was  preparing  for 
their  honorable  reception.  De  Soto  did  not  believe  him,  and  took  precau- 


98 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  1. 


tions  against  treachery.  Side  by  side  he  and  Tuscaloosa  rode  into  the 
Mobilian  capital,  a large  palisaded  and  walled  town  on  a high  plain  by  the 
side  of  a broad  river,  and  called  Manbila.  The  most  acute  students  of  the 
Spanish  narratives  believe  that  Choctaw  Bluff,  in  Clarke  county,  about 
twenty-five  miles  above  the  confluence  of  the  Alabama  and  Tombigby  rivers, 
was  its  site. 

It  was  at  about  eight  o’clock  on  a bright  October  morning,  when  De  Soto 
and  Tuscaloosa  rode  into  Manbila  together,  and  were  received  in  the  great 
square  with  songs,  the  music  of  flutes,  and  the  dancing  of  Indian  girls. 
They  alighted,  and  were  seated  under  a canopy  of  state,  when  Tuscaloosa 
requested  not  to  be  held  as  a hostage  any  longer.  The  governor  hesitated. 
The  angered  cacique  sprang  to  his  feet  and  with  a proud  and  haughty  step 
walked  into  a house  close  by.  Ortiz,  the  interpreter,  followed,  and  invited 
him  to  breakfast  with  De  Soto.  Tuscaloosa  refused  to  return,  saying:  “If 
your  chief  knows  what  is  best  for  him,  he  will  immediately  take  his  troops 
out  of  my  country.”  The  suspicions  of  the  Spanish  leader  were  confirmed, 
and  he  had  scarcely  recovered  from  his  surprise  when  one  of  his  spies  came 
with  information  that  ten  thousand  warriors,  followers  of  Tuscaloosa  and 
neighboring  chiefs,  were  in  the  houses ; that  a vast  amount  of  weapons  and 
missiles,  such  as  bows  and  arrows,  javelins,  clubs  and  stones,  had  been 
gathered  in  the  town  ; that  the  old  women  and  children  had  been  sent  to  the 
forests,  and  that  the  Indians  were  then  debating  as  to  the  proper  hour  to  fall 
upon  the  Spaniards.  It  was  a startling  announcement  for  De  Soto,  for  a 
greater  part  of  his  army  was  then  lagging  behind  in  fancied  security,  many 
of  them  scattered  and  hunting  in  the  woods.  The  governor,  anxious  to  post- 
pone an  attack  until  his  army  should  come  up,  by  regaining  the  person  of 
Tuscaloosa,  approached  the  cacique  with  smiles  and  gracious  words.  The 
haughty  chief  turned  scornfully  away,  and  mingled  with  his  warriors.  At 
that  moment  a chief  rushed  out,  and  with  a loud  voice  denounced  the  Span- 
iards as  robbers,  thieves  and  assassins  who  should  no  longer  impose  upon 
their  leader  by  depriving  him  of  his  liberty.  Balthazar  Gallegos,  the  greatest 
soldier  of  the  expedition  next  to  De  Soto,  angered  by  this  insolence,  cleft 
the  chief,  with  his  sword,  from  his  head  to  his  loins.  That  act  let  loose  the 
fury  of  the  people.  Like  bees  from  a hive  the  savages  swarmed  out  of  the 
houses  by  hundreds  and  thousands,  and  gradually  pushed  the  invaders  out 
of  the  ponderous  gates  into  the  plain.  The  Manbilans  seized  the  Indian 
slaves  of  De  Soto,  together  with  all  his  baggage.  The  latter  was  stored 
within  the  walls,  and  the  former,  having  their  manacles  knocked  off,  wer6 
armed  and  made  to  fight  their  late  masters.  In  that  first  encounter,  fivt 
Spaniards  were  killed  and  many  were  wounded,  among  them  De  Soto. 


Chap.  VIII. 


BATTLE  IN  TUSCALOOSA’S  CAPITAL. 


99 


Unmindful  of  his  wound,  the  governor,  at  the  head  of  his  cavalry,  charged 
upon  the  mass  of  savages,  and  drove  them  back  into  the  town  with  fearful 
slaughter.  The  Indians  rushed  to  their  wall-towers  and  loop-holes,  and  from 
these  sent  clouds  of  arrows  and  tempests  of  stones  which  drove  the  Span- 
iards back.  As  they  receded,  the  Indians  dropped  from  the  walls  and 
rushed  out  of  the  gates  with  huge  clubs,  beating  the  intruders  and  seizing 
their  keen  swords  and  deadly  spears.  The  hand-to-hand  conflicts  were  fierce 
and  fatal,  especially  to  the  savages.  For  three  hours  the  battle  lasted,  vic- 
tory surging  from  side  to  side  like  the  ebbing  and  flowing  of  the  tides  of  the 
sea.  The  lagging  army  hearing  the  noise  of  battle  had  hastened  forward, 
and  were  now  coming  up  to  the  aid  of  their  comrades.  The  daring  of  De 
Soto,  who  was  everywhere  in  the  battle,  had  already  compelled  the  savages 
to  take  a permanent  position  within  the  walls  of  Manbila ; and  the  priests, 
who  on  their  knees  had  uttered  copious  prayers  for  victory  for  the  Castilians, 
now  sang  the  joyous  Te  Dcum. 

Having  all  of  his  forces  in  hand,  De  Soto  now  formed  the  foot  soldiers  in 
four  divisions,  who,  armed  with  bucklers  and  battle-axes,  charged  upon  the 
walls  and  portals.  The  Indians  had  closed  and  barricaded  the  gates  and 
again  fought  from  the  towers  and  loop-holes.  But  the  siege  was  not  a long 
one.  The  gates  were  forced,  and  through  these  and  over  the  walls  the 
assailants  made  their  way  into  the  town.  A dreadful  carnage  ensued.  The 
cavalry  remained  outside  to  catch  and  slay  any  who  might  attempt  to  escape 
whilst  the  butchery  was  going  on  within.  The  Indians  fought  with  all  the 
gallantry  and  desperation  of  patriots  defending  their  country.  Although 
the  ground  was  covered  with  the  dead,  not  one  of  the  survivors  asked  for 
quarter.  Young  women,  in  large  numbers,  fought  side  by  side  with  the  war- 
riors, with  equal  bravery  and  skill,  and  their  blood  flowed  as  freely.  At 
length  De  Soto,  at  the  head  of  his  cavalry,  made  a furious  charge  into  the 
town,  with  a shout  of  “ Our  Lady  and  Santiago  !”  and  made  fearful  lanes 
through  the  ranks  of  fighting  men  and  women.  As  he  arose  to  hurl  his  lance 
at  a powerful  Indian  warrior,  a heavy  arrow  pierced  deeply  into  his  thigh. 
Unable  to  pull  it  out  or  sit  in  his  saddle,  he  continued  to  fight,  standing  in 
his  stirrups.  At  length  the  houses  were  fired  and  the  combatants  were 
shrouded  in  the  blinding  smoke.  As  the  sun  went  down,  the  sights  and 
sounds  of  slaughter  and  groans  of  the  dying  were  awful.  When  the  twilight 
deepened  into  night,  the  contest  was  over.  It  had  lasted  nine  hours.  Man- 
bila was  a smoking  ruin,  and  its  inhabitants  had  perished. 

That  conflict  was  disastrous  to  both  races.  Eighty-two  Europeans  per- 
ished, among  whom  were  some  of  the  brightest  flowers  of  Spanish  chivalry. 
It  was  estimated  that  eleven  thousand  native  Alabamians  fell  in  the  battle 


lOO 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  1. 


or  were  burned  in  the  houses.  It  is  believed  that  Tuscaloosa  remained  in 
his  house  and  perished  in  the  flames.  Forty-five  horses  were  slain.  All  the 
camp  equipage  and  baggage  were  consumed  in  the  place  where  the  Indians 
had  stored  them  ; all  the  clothes,  medicines,  books,  pearls,  relics  and  robes 
of  the  priests  with  their  flour  and  wine  used  in  the  eucharist  or  sacrament 
of  the  Lord’s  Supper ; instruments,  and  much  of  the  armor  with  many  other 
things  which  could  not  be  obtained  in  the  wilderness,  were  utterly  destroyed. 
Among  the  ghastly  ruins  and  piles  of  the  dead,  the  Spaniards  passed  the 
night  after  the  battle.  Many  of  them  were  wounded  and  dying.  Only  one 
surgeon  was  left.  Seventeen  hundred  severe  wounds  called  for  his  care,  but 
his  instruments  had  perished  in  the  flames.  De  Soto,  though  badly 
wounded,  bestowed  all  his  care  upon  his  suffering  companions.  For  eight 
days  they  remained  in  the  town,  and  then  went  out  to  the  Indian  huts  on 
the  plain.  Foraging  parties  were  sent  out  who  found  villages  abounding  in 
provisions.  They  brought  in  beautiful  captive  maidens  from  whom  they 
learned  that  Tuscaloosa  had  formed  a plan  for  the  destruction  of  the  Span- 
iards weeks  before.  When  the  Talases  complained  to  him  that  their  chief 
had  given  their  people  to  De  Soto  for  slaves,  he  said : “ Fear  nothing;  I shall 
shortly  send  the  Spaniards  back  from  my  country  to  Talase  in  chains,  led  by 
your  people,  whom  they  have  enslaved.  The  whole  land  will  be  rid  of  the 
robbers.”  De  Soto  also  learned  from  these  captive  maidens  that  his 
squadron  was  in  the  bay  of  Pensacola. 

The  fire  at  Manbila  deprived  the  Spaniards  of  two  widely  differing 
sources  of  consolation,  namely,  wheat  flour  and  wine  for  the  eucharist,  and 
playing-cards.  Gambling  was  the  besetting  sin  and  most  exciting  pleasure 
of  all ; and  they  often  staked  their  money,  horges,  jewels  and  even  feminine 
slaves,  at  play.  The  priests  went  through  all  the  religious  forms  excepting 
consecration,  and  the  unusual  ceremony  was  called  Dry  Mass.  Cards  were 
made  of  parchment  and  lent  from  one  company  to  another,  and  deep 
gambling  was  resumed. 

The  news  of  his  ships  that  were  doubtless  laden  with  clothing  and  pro- 
visions gave  De  Soto  joy ; but  his  spirits  were  soon  clouded  by  a conspiracy 
which  had  been  formed  among  some  of  his  followers,  to  abandon  him  and 
sail  in  the  ships  from  Pensacola  to  Spain  or  Peru.  This  discovery  changed 
his  plans.  He  resolved  to  turn  his  back  upon  his  ships  and  go  deeper  into 
the  wilderness.  This  determination  was  announced  on  the  i8th  of  Novem- 
ber, 1540.  The  order  to  march  northward  fell  upon  the  ears  of  the  discon- 
tented ones  like  a clap  of  thunder.  It  was  made  potential  by  a threat  to 
put  to  death  the  first  man  who  should  speak  of  the  ships. 

Northward  the  Spaniards  marched,  and  on  reaching  the  waters  of  the 


Chap.  Vlll. 


DE  SOTO  AMONG  THE  CHICKASAS. 


lOl 


Black  Warrior  River,  they  were  met  by  a large  force  of  Indians  in  battle 
array,  who  longed  to  avenge  the  destruction  of  their  friends  at  Manbila. 
The  news  of  that  tragedy  had  spread  over  a vast  region,  and  kindled  the 
fiercest  hatred  of  the  Spaniards  in  the  hearts  of  the  natives.  Hundreds  of 
opposing  warriors  were  swelled  to  thousands,  and  De  Soto  was  compelled  to 
fight  his  way  inch  by  inch  through  the  land  of  the  Choctaws.  At  length, 
after  passing  over  the  uplands  of  Mississippi — a beautiful,  fertile  and  popu- 
lous region — he  reached  the  upper  tributaries  of  the  Yazoo  River  in  Yalo- 
busha county,  and  encamped  in  front  of  the  town  of  Chickasa,  the  capital 


THE  SPANIARDS  GAMBLING. 


of  the  Chickasa  nation.  It  was  now  December.  Ice  and  even  snow 
appeared  and  chilled  the  troops,  and  De  Soto  resolved  to  pass  the  winter 
there  in  a sheltered  camp.  The  chief  of  the  Chickasas  feigned  friendship 
for  the  Spaniards.  It  might  have  been  real  had  the  latter  been  wise  and 
just.  But  they  were  not.  Cruelty  and  wrong,  as  before,  marked  their  deal- 
ings with  the  natives.  When  March  came  and  De  Soto  thought  of  marching 
forward,  he  demanded  of  the  Chickasa  chief  two  hundred  men  as  burden- 
bearers.  The  cacique  answered  the  demand  by  a furious  attack  upon  the 
Spanish  camp  on  a dark  night,  during  a wild  gale  from  the  north.  The 


102 


OUR  COUNTkV. 


Book  1. 


assailants  came  in  four  columns,  with  horrid  yells  and  the  hideous  sounds  ol 
wooden  drums  and  blasts  on  conch-shells.  Before  the  sleeping  Spaniards 
w'ere  fairly  roused  from  their  slumbers,  their  huts,  made  of  cane  and  straw, 
were  in  flames,  fired  by  arrows  bearing  torches.  Blinded  by  the  smoke,  they 
ran  out  of  the  houses  half-dressed,  some  leaving  their  weapons  behind  them. 
Horses  in  stables  perished,  and  many  swine,  in  roofed  pens,  were  burned  to 
death.  The  conflict  that  ensued  was  terrible.  The  Spaniards  fought 
valiantly  as  best  they  might,  and  finally  drove  their  dusky  assailants  into  the 
forests.  But  the  disaster  to  the  Europeans  was  greater  than  that  which 
befel  them  at  Manbila.  They  had  lost  forty  of  their  diminished  number. 
The  only  Spanish  woman  in  the  camp — the  wife  of  a soldier — w'as  burned  to 
ashes.  Fifty  horses  had  perished,  and  most  of  the  men  saved  nothing  except- 
ing what  they  had  on  their  backs  or  in  their  hands. 

The  remainder  of  the  inclement  season  was  passed  by  the  Spaniards  in 
great  wretchedness.  Cold  and  hunger,  and  grievous  wounds  tortured  them ; 
and  the  Indians  fell  upon  them  night  after  night  like  fierce  tigers.  At 
length,  the  warm  sun  of  April  alleviated  their  sufferings,  and  De  Soto  moved 
on  in  a northwesterly  direction,  in  search  of  the  land  of  gold  about  which  he 
had  dreamed  so  long.  The  exasperated  savages  assailed  him  everywhere, 
and  at  a town  called  Alibamo,  he  had  another  desperate  encounter  with  them. 
Then  he  moved  on,  and  in  May  he  stood  upon  the  banks  of  the  Mississippi 
River,  in  Tunica  county,  near  the  lower  Chickasa  Bluffs,  above  the  mouth  of 
the  St.  Francis  River.  The  mighty  Mississippi,  then  full  to  the  brim,  filled 
De  Soto  with  admiration.  He  had  not  found  gold,  but  he  was  the  first  Euro- 
pean who  found  the  great  river  upon  whose  bosom  floats,  annually,  wealth  a 
thousandfold  greater  than  the  mines  of  Mexico  or  Peru  ever  yielded.  He 
was  not  the  conqueror  of  a country  teeming  with  a weak  people ; but  he 
had  achieved  a conquest  far  more  glorious  than  Cortez  or  Pizarro  had  done, 
and  had  secured  immortality  for  his  name  and  deeds. 

Still  thirsting  for  gold,  and  expecting  to  find  the  Pacific  Ocean  not  far 
off,  De  Soto  crossed  the  Mississippi  River;  traversed  the  lagoons  of  Arkan- 
sas ; climbed  over  the  great  Ozark  hills,  and  penetrated  the  country  west- 
ward almost  to  the  eastern  slopes  of  the  Rocky  Mountains.  For  a year  he 
wandered  in  those  wild  regions;  wintered  far  up  the  Arkansas  River,  and  in 
the  month  of  May,  1542,  returned  to  the  Mississippi  at  a point  a little  north 
of  the  mouth  of  the  Arkansas.  He  now  gave  up  gold-seeking;  and  on  the 
eastern  bank  of  the  great  river,  in  Bolivar  county,  Mississippi,  he  selected  a 
site  for  a colony  among  a tribe  of  savage  sun-worshippers.  They  showed 
intense  hostility  to  the  Spaniards ; and  when  De  Soto,  in  an  address  to  them 
demanding  their  submission  to  his  arms,  called  himself  a child  of  the  Sun, 


Chap.  VIII. 


DEATH  OF  DE  SOTO. 


103 


they  ridiculed  him.  “If  you  are  a child  of  the  Sun,”  they  haughtily 
replied,  “ return  to  him,  dry  up  the  Mississippi,  and  we  will  submit  to  you.” 

De  Soto  was  now  utterly  discouraged,  and  he  began  the  construction  of 
two  brigantines  wherewith  to  communicate  with  Cuba.  Exhausted  in  body 
and  mind,  he  was  soon  prostrated  by  a malignant  fever.  Satisfied  that  he 
could  not  live,  he  ordered  his  attendants  to  carry  him  out  of  his  hut  into  the 
balmy  air  under  a wide-spreading  live-oak,  where  he  received  the  holy  minis- 
trations of  the  priests.  Then  he  appointed  Moscoso,  his  lieutenant,  to  be 
his  successor  in  office  and  commander  of  the  ragged  remnant  of  his  troops 
who  gathered  around  him  in  silent  grief.  One  bore  a broken  helmet,  another 
a battered  cuirass,  a third  a splintered  lance,  and  a fourth  a jagged  sword. 
Some  were  dressed  in  skins,  and  some  were  half-naked.  All,  in  person  and 
equipment,  were  only  shadows  of  the  brilliant  retinue  who  had  gathered 
under  his  banner  at  San  Lucar  about  five  years  before.  He  exhorted  them 
to  keep  together,  bade  them  farewell,  and  then  died ! To  conceal  the  fact 
of  his  death,  and  to  protect  his  body  from  desecration  by  the  savages,  his 
followers  placed  it  in  a trough  made  of  live-oak ; and  at  midnight,  when 
darkness  was  intense,  they  sunk  it  to  the  bottom  of  the  river.  So  perished 
the  discoverer  of  the  Mississippi,  in  the  beautiful  month  of  May,  1542,  at 
the  early  age  of  forty-two  years. 

But  little  more  need  be  said  about  this  wonderful  expedition.  Moscoso 
led  the  Spaniards  into  the  wilderness  west  of  the  Mississippi  again,  hoping 
to  find  Mexico.  For  a year  they  wandered  there  and  then  returned  to  the 
Mississippi,  where  they  built  brigantines  and  floated  in  them  upon  its  bosom 
toward  the  sea.  The  once  splendid  army  of  one  thousand  men  was  now 
reduced' to  three  hundred  and  twenty.  Taking  with  them  the  beautiful 
young  women  whom  they  had  captured  at  Manbila,  and  several  of  the  best 
horses  that  survived,  they  sailed  out  into  the  Gulf  of  Mexico,  crossed  it, 
and  after  enduring  untold  miseries,  they  reached  Panuco,  a Spanish  settle- 
ment on  the  coast  of  Mexico,  in  September.  They  went  to  the  City  of 
Mexico,  where  they  were  entertained  by  the  viceroy;  and  the  elegant  Castilian 
ladies  at  that  petty  court  were  enraptured  by  the  beauty  of  the  dusky  Mobil- 
ian  girls,  whom  they  caressed,  and  feasted,  and  dressed  in  Spanish  costume. 

Maldinado,  the  commander  of  De  Soto’s  ships,  had  waited  long  for  him 
at  Pensacola.  He  had  made  several  voyages  in  search  of  him,  and  finally, 
in  the  spring  of  1543,  while  he  was  at  Vera  Cruz,  he  had  heard  of  De  Soto’s 
death  on  the  Mississippi,  and  that  only  three  hundred  of  his  followers  lived  to 
reach  Mexico.  This  sad  news  cast  a gloom  over  Havana ; and  poor  Dona 
Isabel,  the  wife  of  the  great  leader,  who  had  so  long  anxiously  awaited  his 
return,  died  of  a broken  heart. 

8 


1 


( 


CHAPTER  IX. 

VOYAGE  OF  VERAZZANI — HE  EXPLORES  THE  COASTS  FROM  NORTH  CAROLINA  TO  NEWFOUNDLAND 
— KIDNAPS  AN  INDIAN  BOY — CARTIER  DISCOVERS  THE  GULF  OF  ST.  LAWRENCE — ON  A SECOND 
VOYAGE  HE  DISCOVERS  THE  RIVER  ST.  LAWRENCE  AND  NAMES  BOTH — HE  EXPLORES  THE 
RIVER  TO  THE  SITE  OF  MONTREAL — TAKES  A DAUGHTER  OF  A HURON  CHIEF  TO  FRANCE — 
HE  “WINTERS  AT  THE  SITE  OF  QUEBEC — CARTIER  KIDNAPS  THE  “ KING  OF  CANADA  ” AND 
SOME  OF  HIS  CHIEFS,  AND  TAKES  THEM  TO  FRANCE — ENGLISH  EXPLORERS — THEIR  SUFFER- 
INGS IN  NEWFOUNDLAND — CARTIER’S  THIRD  VOYAGE  TO  THE  ST.  LAWRENCE — HOSTILITIES  OF 
THE  NATIVES — THE  LORD  OF  ROBERTVILLE  ON  THE  ST.  LAWRENCE. 

WE  will  now  leave  the  Spanish  discoverers,  and  turn  our  attention 
to  others  who  made  voyages  to  the  coasts  of  North  America  on 
similar  errands. 

Francis  the  First,  one  of  the  most  energetic  as  well  as  enlightened  sover- 
eigns of  France  down  to  the  sixteenth  century,  becoming  jealous  of  the 
glory  acquired  by  his  rival  of  Spain,  by  discoveries  and  conquests  on  this 
continent,  fitted  out  four  ships  late  in  the  year  1523  for  explorations  on  the 
North  American  coasts.  They  were  placed  under  the  command  of  John 
Verazzani,  a Florentine,  of  whose  career  very  little  is  known.  He  appears 
to  have  been  a somewhat  eminent  navigator,  but  the  narrative  of  his  voyage 
to  our  country  is  so  obscure  in  many  parts  that  it  is  difficult  to  discover  the 
truth.  The  account  of  that  voyage  on  which  historians  have  most  relied,  is 
given  in  a letter  which,  it  is  alleged,  the  navigator  wrote  to  King  Francis 
after  his  return,  by  which  it  seems  he  sailed  for  the  Madeiras  in  December, 
1523,  and  left  them  on  the  27th  of  January,  1524,  proceeding  due  west. 
Three  of  his  ships  were  soon  disabled  by  a tempest  that  swept  over  the 
Atlantic,  and  put  back;  and  he  went  on  with  only  one  vessel.  In  that  he 
reached  the  American  coast  in  north  latitude  34°,  or  not  far  from  Cape 
Fear  in  southern  North  Carolina.  That  was  in  the  month  of  March.  He 
speaks  of  the  climate  as  salubrious ; of  the  coast  as  abounding  with  lakes 
and  ponds — the  numerous  bays  and  inlets  there ; of  the  people  as  black- 
skinned, “ not  much  differing  from  Ethiopians,”  with  thick  black  hair  worn 
tied  back  upon  the  head  in  the  form  of  a little  tail ; and  going  entirely 
naked  excepting  at  the  loins,  from  which  depended  from  a girdle  of  braided 
grass,  a marten  skin.  These  people  gathered  on  the  beach  in  considerable 


V 


Chap.  IX. 


VERAZZANI  ON  THE  CAROLINA  COASTS. 


105 


numbers,  and  made  many  friendly  signs.  A young  sailor,  more  courageous 
than  the  rest,  swam  toward  the  shore  with  little  bells,  looking-glasses  and 
other  trifles  as  presents  for  them,  and  when  he  was  near  the  beach,  he  tossed 
them  to  the  natives,  and  turned  to  swim  back.  The  surf  was  high,  and  he 
was  thrown  by  it  upon  the  sands,  so  much  exhausted  that  he  seemed  to  be 
dead.  But  he  was  sufficiently  alive  to  scream  lustily  when  the  natives  bore 
him  away  from  the  water,  for  he  expected  to  be  killed  and  eaten  by  them. 
They  stripped  him,  and  viewed  with  astonishment  his  white  skin.  Then 
they  made  a large  fire  on  which,  his  companions  imagined,  they  were  about 


THE  SAILOR  ON  THE  SEA  SHORE. 


to  roast  him  for  their  dinner,  but  it  was  only  an  act  of  kindness  to  restore 
warmth  to  his  limbs.  When  he  had  recovered  sufficiently  to  show,  by  signs, 
that  he  wished  to  return,  they  hugged  him  with  great  affection,  withdrew  to 
a little  sand-hill,  and  watched  him  until  he  was  safely  in  the  boat  from  which 
he  swam. 

Verazzani  then  went  further  up  the  coast,  probably  as  far  as  the  vicinity 
of  Albemarle  Sound,  where  he  landed,  with  twenty  men.  A short  distance 
from  the  sea,  the  land  was  covered  with  large  trees,  among  which  were  noble 
cypresses.  From  these  forest  trees  trailed  luxuriant  vines  which  were  clus- 
tered with  delicious  grapes,  the  natives  said,  in  early  autumn.  The  people 
fled  in  fear  to  the  woods.  They  were  fairer  than  those  further  south,  and 
were  covered  with  a light  drapery  made  of  “ certain  plants  which  hung  down 
from  the  branches”- — Spanish  moss? — tied  by  threads  of  wild  hemp.  Their 


io6 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  I. 


heads  were  uncovered.  They  lived  in  huts  made  of  saplings  and  shrubbery, 
and  navigated  canoes  dug  out  of  a single  log  without  any  iron  instrument 
whatever.  In  the  tall  reedy  grass,  the  mariners  found  concealed  “ a very  old 
woman  and  a young  girl  eighteen  or  twenty  years  of  age.  The  old  woman 
carried  two  infants  on  her  shoulders,  and  behind  her  neck  a little  boy  eight 
years  of  age.”  The  women  shrieked  and  made  signs  to  the  men,  who  had 
fled,  to  come  to  their  rescue.  “ We  took  the  little  boy  from  the  old  woman,” 
says  the  Florentine,  “to  carry  with  us  to  France,  and  would  have  taken  the 
girl,  who  was  very  beautiful  and  very  tall,  but  it  was  impossible  because  of 
the  loud  shrieks  she  uttered  as  we  attempted  to  lead  her  away ; so  we  deter- 
mined to  leave  her,  and  take  the  boy  only.”  The  story  of  this  kidnapping 
was  soon  spread  over  all  that  region,  and  planted  the  seeds  of  intense  hatred 
of  the  white  man  in  the  bosoms  of  the  natives.  Their  products  were  the 
bane  of  Raleigh’s  settlement  on  Roanoke  Island  on  that  coast,  sixty  years 
later. 

Verazzani  coasted  further  northward,  and  it  is  evident,  from  his  topo- 
graphical description,  that  he  entered  the  harbor  of  New  York  and  discov- 
ered the  mouth  of  the  Hudson  River.  He  made  a very  brief  tarriance  there. 
The  land  seemed  full  of  people,  who  received  the  mariners  kindly.  They  did 
not  differ  much  in  appearance  from  the  inhabitants  further  south,  and  were 
dressed  in  cloaks  made  of  the  beautiful  plumage  of  birds.  Weighing  anchor 
after  a very  brief  intercourse  with  these  people,  he  sailed  eastward,  as  the 
coast  lay,  discovered  Block  Island,  off  the  Connecticut  shore,  and  came  to  a 
beautiful  hilly  country  in  latitude  forty-one  degrees  and  forty  minutes.  He 
was  then,  evidently,  in  Narragansett  Bay,  and  beheld  the  shores  of  Rhode 
Island,  where  the  Northmen  had  settled  more  than  five  hundred  years 
before.  There  he  found  the  “ finest  looking  tribe  and  the  handsomest  in 
their  costume  ” of  any  he  had  seen  on  the  voyage ; larger  in  persons  than 
the  average  European.  “Among  them,”  Verazzani  said,  “were  two  kings 
more  beautiful  in  form  and  stature  than  can  possibly  be  described  the 
oldest,  about  forty  years  of  age,  wearing  “ a deer’s  skin  around  his  body, 
artificially  wrought  in  damask  figures ; his  head  without  covering ; his  hair 
tied  back  in  various  knots,  and  around  his  neck  he  wore  a large  chain  orna- 
mented with  many  stones  of  different  colors.  “ Their  women,”  he  said,  “are 
of  the  same  form  and  beauty,  very  graceful,  of  fine  countenances  and  pleas- 
ing appearance  in  manners  and  modesty ; wearing  no  clothing  except  a deer- 
skin, ornamented  like  those  worn  by  the  men ; some  wear  very  rich  lynx 
skins  upon  their  arms,  and  various  ornaments  on  their  heads  composed  of 
braids  of  hair  which  also  hang  down  upon  their  breasts  on  each  side.  Others 
wear  different  ornaments,  such  as  the  women  of  Egypt  and  Syria  use.” 


Chap.  IX. 


VERAZZANI’S  VOYAGE  ALONG  THE  COASTS. 


107 


The  inhabitants  were  kind,  but  shy.  The  men  could  never  be  persuaded 
to  take  their  wives  on  board  the  ship  of  the  Florentine.  “ One  of  the  two 
kings,”  he  said,  “ often  came  with  his  queen  and  many  attendants  to  see  the 
vessel,”  but  the  women  were  kept  at  a distance.  The  country  seemed  to  be 
very  fertile,  and  abounded  in  their  season  with  apples,  plums,  filberts  and 
other  kinds  of  fruit  and  nuts ; and  in  the  forests  were  great  numbers  of 
deers,  lynxes  and  other  wild  animals.  The  dwellings  of  the  people  were 
generally  circular  in  form,  and  built  of  split  logs  ; and  sometimes  they  were 
large  enough  to  accommodate  a family  of  twenty-five  or  thirty  persons. 

From  Narragansett  Bay,  Verazzani  sailed  eastward  early  in  May,  passing 
among  the  numerous  islands  off  the  coast  of  Massachusetts,  and  touching 
somewhere,  probably,  on  the  coast  of  Maine.  There  he  found  the  people 
coarser  in  appearance,  less  friendly,  and  more  fierce  and  warlike.  They  were 
clad  in  the  skins  of  the  bear,  the  lynx,  the  deer  and  the  seal.  No  signs  of 
cultivation  appeared,  and  the  inhabitants  seemed  to  live  almost  wholly  on 
the  products  of  the  forest  and  the  waters.  The  hills  were  covered  with  vast 
woods;  and  far  in  the  interior  he  saw  lofty  mountains.  The  voyagers  had 
very  little  intercourse  with  these  savages,  and  sailing  eastward  and  north- 
ward, came  to  Newfoundland.  Thence  they  turned  their  prow  toward 
Europe  and  sailed  to  France.  Verazzani  had  traversed  the  borders  of  the 
North  American  continent,  as  his  ship  sailed,  about  two  thousand  miles,  and 
he  named  the  vast  country  New  France. 

Verazzani’s  object  was  to  find  Cathay,  in  the  extreme  eastern  limit  of 
Asia,  hoping  there  to  discover  a passage  into  the  Indian  Ocean,  for  which 
Columbus  and  Cabot  had  sought.  What  became  of  him  after  this  marvel- 
ous voyage  is  not  certainly  known.  He  appears  to  have  left  the  service  of 
the  French  king,  who  was  then  warring  desperately  with  Charles  the  Fifth 
of  Spain  and  Germany.  Early  in  1525,  Francis  was  defeated  before  Pavia, 
wounded,  made  a prisoner  and  carried  captive  to  Madrid,  where  he  was 
detained  almost  a year.  His  projects  for  foreign  discoveries  were,  of  course, 
abandoned  for  a time,  and  it  was  several  years  before  they  were  resumed. 
Meanwhile,  Verazzani,  it  seems  probable,  made  two  other  voyages  to 
America,  but  not  as  a commander.  He  appears  to  have  had  some  communi- 
cation with  Henry  the  Eighth  of  England,  and  possibly  was  in  his  service, 
for  an  old  chronicler  says  that  he  presented  to  that  monarch  a map  of 
America,  after  he  had  made  three  voyages  to  this  continent.  It  is  certain 
that  Henry  sent  out  two  exploring  ships  in  1527 — the  Samson  and  the  Mary 
of  Guilford — and  it  is  asserted  that  Verazzani  sailed  in  the  first  mentioned 
vessel.  We  have  a record  of  another  expedition  having  been  sent  to 
America  by  Henry,  in  1536,  for  discovery  or  settlement. 


io8 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  I. 


For  several  years  voyages  for  discovery  from  Europe  to  America  ceased. 
Meanwhile,  the  brave  Admiral  de  Brien  (Chabot,  Compte  de  Charni),  who 
was  a favorite  at  the  French  court,  had  urged  his  king  to  attempt  making  a 
settlement  somewhere  in  New  France,  and  so  secure  its  possession  for  his 
crown.  But  it  w'as  not  until  ten  years  after  Verazzani’s  voyage,  that  Francis 
yielded  to  the  importunities  of  Chabot.  Then  a plan  for  making  settlements 
in  America  was  arranged  under  the  direction  of  Chabot,  and  two  ships,  of 
sixty  tons  each,  were  fitted  out  at  St.  Malo,  a fortified  seaport  of  France,  for 
that  purpose,  and  placed  in  charge  of  Jacques  Cartier  (James  Carter),  a 
native  of  that  port  and  then  in  the  service  of  the  French  monarch. 

After  appropriate  religious  ceremonies  in  the  cathedral  of  St.  Malo,  in 
which  Chabot  participated,  Cartier  sailed  for  America.  He  left  St.  Malo  on 
a bright  afternoon  (April  20,  1534),  with  a crew  of  one  hundred  and  twenty 
men  in  each  of  his  vessels.  The  voyage  was  prosperous,  and  with  generally 
fair  winds  he  reached  the  eastern  coast  of  Newfoundland  in  twenty  days. 
Then  he  sailed  northward,  entered  the  Straits  of  Belle  Isle,  and  touching  the 
coast  of  Labrador,  he  formally  took  possession  of  the  country  in  the  name 
of  his  king  by  planting  a cross  and  hanging  upon  it  the  arms  of  France. 
The  natives,  who  had  been  fishing  near,  gathered  around  the  Frenchmen  in 
considerable  numbers,  with  their  chief,  and  looked  with  wonder  as  the 
mariners  raised  that  symbol  of  the  atonement  made  of  the  trunk  of  a tree, 
and  thirty  feet  in  height.  The  shield  they  hung  upon  it  bore  the  lilies  of 
France — the  royal  insignia — and  over  it  they  carved,  in  antique  letters, 
Vive  le  Roi  dc  France! — “Live  the  King  of  France.”  Then  the  mariners 
all  knelt,  and  with  hands  stretched  toward  the  skies,  they  thanked  God  for 
his  mercies.  The  savage  chief  faintly  comprehending  the  significance  of  the 
shield  with  the  Gallic  arms  as  a token  of  claimed  sovereignty,  told  Cartier, 
by  signs,  that  he  could  not  allow  a cross  to  be  set  up  without  his  consent, 
whereupon  the  mariner  satisfied  him  by  the  assurance  that  it  was  only  as  a 
beacon  to  guide  other  voyagers  in  those  waters. 

After  spending  some  weeks  in  exploring  the  great  gulf  west  and  south- 
west of  Newfoundland,  discovering  the  Magdalen  Islands,  the  northern 
coasts  of  Cape  Breton  and  the  bays  of  Chaleurs  and  Gaspe,  now  at  the 
eastern  extremity  of  Canada,  Cartier  landed  and  held  friendly  intercourse 
with  the  Indians.  There  he  set  up  a huge  wooden  cross,  as  before,  with  a 
shield  and  the  French  lilies,  and  took  possession  in  the  name  of  King 
Francis.  His  kindness  inspired  the  natives  with  such  confidence,  that 
one  of  the  chiefs  offered  to  Cartier  two  of  his  sons  to  accompany  him  to 
France,  on  the  condition  that  he  should  return  them  to  their  home  the 
next  year. 


Chap.  IX. 


VOYAGE  OF  JACQUES  CARTIER. 


109 


From  Gaspe  Bay  Cartier  sailed  northeast,  and  doubling  the  east  end  of 
great  Anticosti  Island,  he  went  up  that  branch  of  the  St.  Lawrence  some 
distance,  without  suspecting  that  he  was  in  the  mouth  ol  a great  river  whose 
chief  sources  were  immense  inland  seas  of  fresh  water.  As  the  season  of 
autumn  storms  was  approaching,  he  turned  back,  passed  through  the  Straits 
of  Belle  Isle,  and  sailed  away  for  France,  reaching  St.  Malo  early  in  Septem- 
ber. His  voyage  was  considered  successful.  Chabot  was  delighted,  and 
Francis  was  encouraged  to  make  new  efforts  on  a larger  scale,  in  the  same 
direction.  Three  ships  were  fitted  out  late  in  the  following  spring— Za 
Grand  HcrmioJie,  La  Petite  Hermione, 

L Emerillon.  The  first  was  a vessel  of 
one  hundred  and  twenty  tons  burthen; 
the  second  was  sixty  tons,  and  the  third 
was  smaller.  Cartier  was  commissioned 
“ Captain  and  Pilot  of  the  King.”  He 
gathered  his  companions  and  seamen  in 
the  cathedral  at  St.  Malo,  at  the  middle 
of  May,  where  the  whole  company  re- 
ceived absolution — pardon  of  their  sins — 
from  the  Bishop,  and  also  his  blessing.  It 
was  Whit-Sunday  — a festival  when  all 
newly-baptized  persons  appear  in  the 
church  in  white  garments.  Beautiful  and 
picturesque  was  the  scene,  and  joyous  was 
the  occasion ; and  impressions  of  the 
pageant  remained  on  the  memory  of  each 
mariner  long  after  he  left  the  holy  fane 
that  day,  and  embarked  for  his  voyage. 

Cartier  sailed  from  St.  Malo  on  his  sec- 
ond voyage  to  New  France,  with  several 
French  noblemen,  on  the  19th  of  May, 

1535 — Le  Grande  Hermione  was  his  flag- 
ship. Storms  soon  separated  the  vessels, 
but  they  met  at  an  appointed  rendezvous 
in  the  Straits  of  Belle  Isle,  on  the  26th  of  J uly.  Going  westward,  they  entered 
the  gulf  on  which  Cartier  had  sailed  the  previous  year  ; and  on  the  day  dedi- 
cated to  St.  Lawrence,  they  passed  into  the  waters  between  Anticosti  and 
the  main,  on  the  north,  to  which  Cartier  gave  the  name  of  St.  Lawrence. 
This  title  was  afterward  given  to  the  gulf  and  to  the  great  river  at  whose 
mouth  Anticosti  lies.  That  island,  Cartier  named  L’Assumption.  Its 


CROSS  ON  THE  COAST  OF  LABRADOR 


1 lO 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  1. 


Indian  name  was  Natiscotec,  the  sound  of  which  from  the  lips  of  the 
natives  was,  to  English  ears,  Anticosti,  and  so  they  called  it. 

Voyaging  on,  Cartier  found  himself  in  a broad  but  narrowing  and  fresh- 
ening river ; and  on  the  first  of  September,  he  was  at  the  mouth  of  the 
dark  and  mysterious  Saguenay  River,  where  the  St.  Lawrence  is  ten  miles 
in  width.  Proceeding  more  than  a hundred  miles  further  up  the  great 
stream,  with  high  mountains  a little  way  from  its  shores  on  his  right  and 
gentle  slopes  from  the  water’s  edge  on  his  left,  Cartier  came  to  a large  island 
which  he  called  The  Isle  of  Bacchus.  It  is  now  the  Island  of  Orleans,  in 
sight  of  Quebec.  He  went  on  shore  with  the  tw'^o  young  men  whom  he 
had  taken  to  France  the  year  before,  and  the  next  day  a handsome  Algon- 
quin chief,  named  Donnacona,  who  was  “ Lord  of  Canada,”  came  to  La 
Grande  Hcrmionc  in  a beautifully  wrought  canoe  to  confer  with  Cartier. 
The  conference  was  easy,  for  the  two  young  men  were  interpreters.  “ We 
have  been  to  France,”  they  said,  “and  have  been  well-treated.  The  whole 
country  is  full  of  riches.  Great  castles,  great  armies,  great  ships,  great  cities 
are  there,  and  our  master  is  a great  man  in  his  country.”  Donnacona  was 
pleased.  He  asked  Cartier  to  stretch  out  his  bare  arm.  The  king  kissed  it, 
and  laid  it  about  his  own  neck  in  token  of  affection.  “ Go  to  my  village  of 
Stadacona  yonder,”  said  the  dusky  prince.  “You  will  find  a safe  harbor 
there  and  a welcome.”  Then  entering  his  canoe  he  glided  swiftly  over  the 
waters  toward  a bold,  rocky  promontory  in  sight,  around  which  came  sweep- 
ing into  the  St.  Lawrence,  from  the  West,  a gentle  stream.  Cartier  followed. 
Passing  a high  waterfall  on  his  right,  he  was  soon  in  the  safe  harbor,  with 
scenery  around  him  whose  beauty  and  grandeur  were  enchanting.  He  was 
in  the  harbor  of  Quebec.  The  little  stream  which  he  called  the  St.  Croix 
(Holy  Cross)  was  the  present  St.  Charles,  and  the  lofty  cascade  was  the 
famous  Fall  of  Montmorenci.  Stadacona,  the  capital  of  the  “ Lord  of 
Canada,”  was,  it  is  believed,  on  the  site  of  the  present  suburb  St.  Roque  in 
the  city  of  Quebec,  on  the  border  of  the  St.  Charles. 

Cartier  left  his  larger  vessels  at  Quebec,  and  in  the  smaller  one  he 
ascended  the  St.  Lawrence  as  far  as  Lake  St.  Peter,  an  expansion  of  the 
river.  The  two  young  men  refused  to  go  any  further  with  him,  because  he 
had  broken  his  promise  to  leave  them  at  their  home  on  Gasp6  Bay.  So 
Cartier  had  no  interpreter  on  his  voyage  up  the  St.  Lawrence.  Obstructions 
in  the  stream  near  Lake  St.  Peter  caused  him  to  leave  his  ship  and  in  a small 
boat,  with  three  volunteers,  make  his  way  against  the  currents.  They  rowed 
up  as  far  as  the  Indian  town  of  Hochelaga,  which,  Cartier  said,  contained 
fifty  houses,  “ about  fifty  paces  long  and  twelve  or  fifteen  broad,  covered 
over  with  the  bark  of  the  wood  as  broad  as  any  board,  very  finely  and  cun- 


Chap.  IX. 


CARTIER  ON  THE  ST.  LAWRENCE. 


Ill 


ningly  joined  together,”  and  having  many  rooms.  On  their  tops  were  gar- 
rets, wherein  they  kept  their  corn.  The  town  was  circular  in  form,  stockaded, 
and  environed  by  three  courses  of  ramparts  made  of  timber  and  about  thirty 
feet  in  height.  There  was  only  one  gate  or  sally-port,  which  was  closed  with 
heavy  timbers,  stakes  and  bars.  On  the  ramparts  were  magazines  of  stone 
for  the  defence  of  the  city. 

Dressed  in  his  most  brilliant  attire,  Cartier  visited  the  town  on  the  day 
following  his  arrival, 
where  he  was  kindly 
received  by  the  Hu- 
ron king.  With  that 
monarch  he  climbed 
to  the  top  of  the  lofty 
mountain  back  of  the 
town,  from  which  he 
beheld,  with  great  ad- 
miration, a vast  ex- 
tent of  level  wood- 
ed country  and  the 
course  of  the  mighty 
river  for  many  miles. 

He  called  the  great 
hill,  Mont  Real  (royal 
mountain);  and  the 
city  which  lies  upon 
the  site  of  the  Hu- 
ron capital,  bears  the 
same  name  — Mon- 
treal. Such,  also,  is 
the  name  of  the 
island  containing  the 
city  and  the  moun- 
tain. 

After  enjoying  the  cartier  and  donnacona. 

hospitalities  of  the 


Hurons  two  or  three  days,  Cartier  departed,  carrying  with  him  the  pretty 
daughter  of  one  of  the  chiefs,  about  eight  years  of  age,  whom  her  father 
lent  to  him  to  take  to  France.  He  joined  his  little  vessel,  returned  to 
Stadacona,  and  as  the  season  was  far  advanced,  it  being  near  the  middle 
of  October,  he  resolved  to  winter  there.  His  vessels  were  moored  in  the 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  I. 


I 12 

St.  Croix  (St.  Charles),  and  there  the  Frenchmen  endured  the  terrible  cold 
of  a Canadian  winter  from  November  until  late  in  March.  Their  sufferings 
were  grievous.  The  scurvy  which  prevailed  among  the  natives  at  Quebec, 
extended  to  the  Frenchmen,  and  of  the  one  hundred  and  ten  Europeans 
there,  eight  died,  and  nearly  all  of  the  others  were  sick. 

The  ice  remained  so  long  in  the  St.  Lawrence  that  Cartier  could  not 
depart  until  May.  On  the  third  of  that  month  he  erected  a huge  cross, 
thirty-five  feet  in  height,  on  the  site  of  Dalhousie  Bastion,  the  highest  point 
of  Cape  Diamond,  the  promontory  at  Quebec,  and  upon  it  he  hung  the  arms 
of  France  with  a Latin  inscription:  “Francis  First,  by  the  grace  of  God 
King  of  France,  reigns.”  On  the  same  day,  Donnacona,  whose  unstinted 
kindness  Cartier  had  enjoyed,  was  invited  with  nine  of  his  chiefs  to  a feast 
on  the  French  flag-ship,  where  they  were  treacherously  detained,  and  were 
borne  away  captives  three  days  afterward.  Cartier  sailed  out  of  the  St. 
Lawrence  on  the  southern  side  of  Anticosti.  He  reached  the  open  sea  from 
the  gulf,  between  Cape  Breton  and  Newfoundland,  and  reached  St.  Malo  on 
the  6th  of  July,  1536.  The  Petite  Hermione  was  found  to  be  so  unseaworthy 
that  she  was  left  in  the  St.  Charles,  where  her  remains  were  found  in  the 
year  1848,  imbedded  in  the  mud. 

At  about  the  time  when  Cartier  sailed  from  Quebec,  two  English  vessels, 
the  Trmity  and  the  Minion,  sailed  from  Gravesend,  with  the  good  wishes  of 
Henry  the  Eighth,  bearing  “thirty  gentlemen  and  ninety  seamen,”  to 
explore  the  region  of  the  St.  Lawrence,  and  to  plant  a colony  in  Newfound- 
land. The  expedition  was  organized  by  “ Master  How,  of  London,  a man 
of  goodly  stature,  and  of  great  courage,  and  given  to  the  study  of  cosmog- 
raphy.” His  companions  were  young  men  of  rank  and  fortune.  The  ships 
were  two  months  on  the  voyage  to  Cape  Breton,  where  they  first  touched 
and  then  sailed  to  Newfoundland.  There  the  company  came  very  near 
starving  to  death.  The  famine  was  so  great  that  some  of  the  stouter  sailors 
killed  weaker  ones  in  the  woods,  and  ate  them.  The  “ gentlemen  ” were 
about  to  cast  lots  to  determine  which  of  their  number  should  become  food 
for  the  rest,  when  a French  fishing-vessel,  amply  provisioned,  came  into  the 
port.  The  Englishmen  seized  her,  and  with  that  vessel  and  their  own  they 
returned  to  England.  The  Frenchmen  laid  their  case  before  Henry,  who, 
when  he  learned  how  great  had  been  the  necessities  of  his  countrymen  when 
they  took  possession  of  the  vessel,  did  not  punish  them,  but  paid  the  foreign- 
ers the  value  of  their  property  out  of  his  private  purse. 

Cartier’s  report  of  his  second  voyage  was  not  cheering.  The  rigors  of 
the  climate  on  the  St.  Lawrence  in  winter ; the  ice-bound  condition  of  that 
stream  for  several  months,  and  the  barrenness  of  the  land  in  precious  stones 


Chap.  IX. 


DE  LA  ROQUE’S  ENTERPRISE. 


II3 

and  metals,  were  so  discouraging  that  more  than  four  years  passed  away 
before  another  like  expedition  from  a French  port  was  planned.  The  king 
was  then  fighting  Charles  with  more  intense  hatred  than  ever  under  the 
impression  that  the  emperor  had  caused  the  death  of  the  eldest  son  of 
Francis,  who  died  from  the  effects  of  poison.  For  two  years  the  father 
could  think  of  nothing  but  revenge,  when  through  the  intervention  of  the 
Pope  and  the  Queen  of  Hungary,  the  two  monarchs  whose  mutual  exaspera- 
tion was  intense,  became  reconciled  and  embraced  and  kissed  each  other  as 
friends.  But  the  French  treasury  was  drained  by  long  wars,  and  Francis 
would  not  listen  to  propositions  for  colonization  in  America,  until  late  in 
1540.  Then  Francis  de  la  Roque,  Lord  of  Robertval,  in  Picardy,  impor- 
tuned the  king  for  permission  to  make  further  discoveries  and  plant  a colony 
in  New  France.  The  monarch  had,  meanwhile,  talked  with  Donnacona  and 
learned  much  about  Canada  which  Cartier  could  not  know.  He  told  him  of 
the  large  numbers  of  fur-bearing  animals  in  its  woods  and  waters ; the  deli- 
cious salmon  in  its  rivers,  and  the  richness  of  its  soil  and  value  of  its  pine 
timber.  Francis  was  willing  to  make  another  trial,  and  he  gave  his  consent 
to  the  fitting  out  of  ships  according  to  the  plan  of  De  la  Roque.  He  com- 
missioned that  gentleman  Viceroy  and  Lieutenant-General  of  “Canada, 
Hochelaga,  Saguenay,  Newfoundland,  Belle  Isle,  Cape  Breton  and  Labra- 
dor and  as  the  services  of  Cartier  were  indispensable,  he  was  recommis- 
sioned “ Captain  and  Pilot  of  the  King,”  and  appointed  chief  mariner  of  the 
expedition,  in  which  six  or  seven  ships  were  to  be  employed.  De  la  Roque 
was  authorized  to  make  conquests  in  the  name  of  France  and  to  plant  a 
colony.  To  obtain  men  for  the  latter  purpose — for  the  founders  of  a State — • 
the  prisons  of  France  were  ransacked,  and  many  desperate  characters  were 
mingled  with  good  men  in  making  up  the  required  number.  The  work  of 
preparation  went  vigorously  on,  and  the  harbor  of  St.  Malo  was  alive  with 
busy  men  in  the  spring  of  1541.  Every  thing  and  every  body  were  in  readi- 
ness late  in  May  excepting  De  la  Roque. 

Cartier  was  not  pleased  with  being  made  subservient  to  the  Lord  of 
Robertval,  in  the  enterprise  before  him,  and  when  five  vessels  were  ready, 
he  was  glad  to  find  De  la  Roque  dilatory.  He  gathered  the  whole  company 
that  were  to  go  in  them,  in  the  cathedral,  where  all  received  absolution  and 
blessings,  and  on  the  23d  of  May  they  sailed  from  St.  Malo  for  the  St. 
Lawrence,  leaving  De  la  Roque  to  follow  when  he  pleased.  Storms  arose 
when  they  approached  the  tracks  of  the  polar  icebergs  as  they  were  voyag- 
ing toward  the  tropics,  and  chilling  fogs  lay  along  their  paths.  It  was  late 
in  August  when  the  squadron  entered  the  harbor  of  Stadacona  or  Quebec. 
The  people  there,  led  by  King  Agona,  the  successor  of  Donnacona,  pressed 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  1. 


1 14 

eagerly  to  the  ships  to  welcome  their  old  monarch,  for  Cartier  had  assured 
them  that  he  would  bring  him  back.  Alas!  Donnacona  was  no  more.  He 
and  his  eight  chiefs  had  been  baptized  in  France,  but  had  grieved  themselves 
to  death  in  slavery.  All  of  them  had  died  before  Cartier’s  departure  on  his 
third  voyage.  The  mariner  dared  not  tell  the  whole  truth  to  the  people  for 
fear  of  their  resentment  ; he  only  acknowledged  that  Donnacona  was  dead, 
and  then  told  them  that  the  other  chiefs  had  all  become  great  lords  in 
France,  had  remained  there,  and  would  never  return.  In  token  of  his  good 
faith  he  showed  them  the  pretty  little  daughter  of  the  Huron  chief  at 
Hochelaga,  whom  he  had  brought  back.  The  people  had  grave  doubts. 
They  were  sullen  and  unfriendly.  The  kidnapping — the  inexcusable  treach- 
ery— had  left  a bitter  sting  of  wrong  in  their  hearts.  Their  sullenness  grew 
more  cloudy,  and  very  soon  signs  of  absolute  hostility  were  manifested. 

Cartier  sailed  up  the  river  a few  leagues  above  Quebec,  where  he  found  a 
better  anchorage ; and  at  the  beginning  of  September  he  sent  two  of  his 
vessels  back  to  France  with  an  account  of  his  doings,  and  to  communicate 
the  fact  that  De  la  Roque  had  not  arrived.  He  again  visited  Hochelaga  to 
ascertain  whether  there  were  serious  obstructions  to  navigation  above  that 
town,  and  to  give  back  to  her  father  the  little  Indian  princess.  He  gave  to 
the  chief  a “ cloak  of  Paris  red,  which  cloak  was  set  with  yellow  and  white 
buttons  of  tin,  and  small  bells.”  These  acts  made  a favorable  impression 
upon  the  Hurons,  and  they  loaded  him  with  favors.  After  visiting  the 
rapids  between  Montreal  and  La  Chine,  he  returned  to  Quebec,  when  the 
temper  of  the  natives  was  so  manifestly  hostile  that  he  was  admonished  to 
provide  for  the  safety  of  himself  and  his  followers.  He  accordingly  built  a 
fort  on  the  island  of  Orleans,  and  made  his  winter  quarters  there,  mooring 
his  vessels  in  a cove.  He  waited  patiently  for  the  coming  of  the  Viceroy, 
but  he  had  not  appeared  when  the  St.  Lawrence  was  bound  with  ice. 

The  winter  was  long,  cold  and  gloomy.  The  Frenchmen  were  almost 
buried  in  the  snow-drifts,  and  suffered  much ; and  when  the  spring  opened, 
the  natives  were  evidently  preparing  to  attack  them.  Their  provisions  being 
almost  exhausted,  and  no  tidings  of  De  la  Roque  reaching  him,  Cartier  left 
the  St.  Lawrence  toward  the  end  of  May,  1542,  and  sailed  for  France. 
Running  into  the  harbor  of  St.  John  near  the  southeastern  extremity  of 
Newfoundland,  he  there  found  De  la  Roque,  Lord  of  Robertval,  with  three 
ships  and  two  hundred  men,  and  about  twenty  French  fishing-vessels.  De 
la  Roque  had  left  Rochelle  in  France  on  the  i6th  of  April,  and  reached  the 
harbor  he  was  in  on  the  8th  of  June.  He  had  been  there  several  days  when 
Cartier  arrived.  They  held  a conference,  when  the  Pilot  told  the  Viceroy 
that  he  had  left  the  St.  Lawrence  because  he  could  not  withstand  the 


Chap.  IX. 


EVENTS  AT  NEWFOUNDLAND. 


II5 

natives,  who  were  becoming  very  hostile.  The  country,  he  said,  did  not 
seem  very  fertile,  and  there  were  no  mines  of  precious  stones  and  valuable 
minerals.  A few  “diamonds” — quartz  crystals — which  he  had  gathered, 
and  a small  quantity  of  gold,  were  all  that  he  had  to  show  of  mineral  wealth, 
and  he  advised  De  la  Roque  to  go  no  further,  for  he  could  never  make  a 
colony  on  the  St.  Lawrence  profitable  to  himself  or  his  king.  The  Viceroy 
regarded  this  advice  as  selfish,  believing  Cartier’s  object  to  be  to  bear  all  the 
honor  of  his  discoveries,  and  the  glory  of  founding  a new  empire,  himself. 
De  la  Roque  therefore  determined  to  go  on,  and  ordered  Cartier  to  go  with 
him  to  the  St.  Lawrence,  not  doubting  that  their  united  forces  might  over- 
awe the  Indians  and  secure  peace  and  prosperity.  But  the  Pilot  resolved 
not  to  submit  to  the  Viceroy.  With  apparent  compliance  with  the  com- 
mands of  his  superior,  he  returned  to  his  ship.  At  twilight  he  secretly  con- 
ferred with  the  captains  of  his  two  other  vessels,  and  at  midnight,  when  the 
heavens  were  cloudy  and  moonless  and  the  darkness  was  intense,  he  escaped 
from  the  harbor  with  his  little  squadron  and  sailed  for  St.  Malo.  Cartier 
was  then  about  fifty  years  of  age,  and  seems  to  have  abandoned  the  sea,  for 
he  afterward  lived  quietly  at  St.  Malo  and  at  a little  village  near,  alternately. 
When  and  where  he  died  is  not  known.  It  is  believed  that  he  lived  in  com- 
parative poverty,  and  died  soon  after  his  return  from  his  third  voyage  to 
Canada. 

Toward  the  end  of  June,  De  la  Roque  left  Newfoundland  for  the  St 
Lawrence,  passing  through  the  straits  of  Belle  Isle.  He  did  not  stop  at 
Quebec,  for  he  found  the  natives  very  hostile,  as  Cartier  had  told  him  they 
were.  He  went  further  up  the  river,  probably  to  the  place  where  the  Pilot’s 
vessels  were  anchored  when  he  sent  the  two  ships  back  to  France  the  pre- 
vious year.  There  De  la  Roque  built  a fort,  but  there  is  no  record  of  what 
else  he  did  in  Canada,  excepting  that  he  and  his  companions  suffered 
severely  during  the  following  winter,  and  early  in  June,  1543,  made  an 
exploring  voyage  to  the  Saguenay,  where  one  of  his  vessels  was  lost.  In 
the  autumn  of  that  year  he  returned  to  France.  Finding  his  king  again 
warring  fiercely  with  his  old  enemy  Charles,  against  whose  empire  he  had 
hurled  five  different  armies  at  as  many  points,  the  Viceroy  abandoned  all 
projects  of  foreign  colonization  and  re-entered  the  military  service  in  which 
he  had  often  before  distinguished  himself.  Six  years  later,  when  Francis 
was  dead  (having  perished  because  of  his  personal  excesses  at  the  age  of 
fifty-three  years),  and  Henry  the  Second,  who  had  married  Catharine  de 
Medici,  was  on  the  throne  of  France,  the  Lord  of  Robertval  again  sailed  foi 
the  St.  Lawrence,  and  was  never  heard  of  afterward. 


CHAPTER  X. 


THE  PROTESTANT  REFORMATION — THE  HUGUENOTS  OR  FRENCH  PROTESTANTS — COLIGNI  AND 
CATHARINE  DE  MEDICI— PERMISSION  GRANTED  FOR  A FRENCH  PROTESTANT  SETTLEMENT  IN 
AMERICA — A SETTLEMENT  PLANTED  ON  THE  COAST  OF  SOUTH  CAROLINA — THE  COLONY 
NEGLECTED — HELPED  BY  THE  NATIVES — A HUGUENOT  .COLONY  IN  FLORIDA — FRIENDSHIP  OF 
THE  NATIVES — THEY  BUILD  A FORT  ON  THE  ST.  JOHN’S  RIVER — APPEARANCE  THERE  OF  A 
SPANISH  FLEET — THE  COLONISTS  WARNED  CONCERNING  IT— THE  SPANIARDS  LAND  AT  THE 
SITE  OF  ST.  AUGUSTINE — FRUITLESS  EXPEDITION  AGAINST  THEM. 

NOW  was  the  period  of  those  earnest  theological  discussions  and 
intense  theological  antagonisms  in  Europe,  known  as  the  Era  of 
the  Reformation.  There  had  been  a revolt  in  Germany,  led  by 
Luther  and  Melancthon,  against  the  Italian  hierarchy  or  rulers  in  the  Chris- 
tian Church  whose  head  was  the  Bishop  or  Pope  of  Rome.  A similar  revolt 
had  broken  out  in  Switzerland,  led  by  Zuingliss.  It  was  a movement  in 
favor  of  intellectual  liberty — the  perfect  equality  of  all  men,  in  Church  and 
State,  in  the  exercise  of  the  inalienable  rights  of  priv'ate  judgment  in  matters 
of  religion  and  politics.  When,  at  a Diet  or  Congress  held  at  Spires,  in  1529 
(at  which  Luther  and  several  princes  who  were  in  sympathy  with  him 
appeared),  the  Church,  by  a decree,  was  made  master  in  both  spiritual  and 
temporal  affairs,  the  reformers  entered  a solemn  protest.  So  they  acquired 
for  their  party  the  name  of  pro/cj-/-ants,  or  PROTESTANTS.  They  found  the 
Church  so  strong  that  they  soon  afterward  formed  a league  for  mutual 
defence,  and  so  first  organized  the  Reformation  as  an  aggressive  moral 
power.  This  led  to  theological  and  political  combinations  which  resulted, 
twenty-five  years  later,  in  the  freedom  of  the  Germans  from  the  domination 
of  the  Italian  Church.  So  popular  were  the  doctrines  of  the  reformers,  in 
Germany,  that  as  early  as  1558  not  more  than  one-tenth  of  the  people  there 
were  adherents  of  the  Church  of  Rome. 

But  that  Church  was  not  disposed  to  yield  its  supremacy  without  a 
struggle,  and  it  put  forth  all  its  energies  for  the  maintenance  of  its  power. 
By  the  mighty  agencies  of  its  traditions,  its  vantage-ground  of  possession, 
the  Order  of  Jesuits  which  it  had  just  created,  and  the  Inquisition  which  it 
had  re-established  with  new  powers,  its  warfare  was  keen  and  terrible,  and  its 


Chap.  X.  COLIGNI  AND  CATHARINE  DE  MEDICI.  II/ 

victories  were  many.  Those  of  its  enemies  were  postponed.  In  the  heat 
of  that  conflict,  which  has  continued  ever  since,  have  been  evolved  the  repre- 
sentative government,  the  free  institutions,  and  the  liberty,  equality  and 
fraternity  which  are  the  birth-rights  of  every  American  citizen  of  whatever 
hue  or  creed. 

In  France  the  Reformation  met  enemies  in  the  court,  the  Church  and  a 
majority  of  the  people,  and  its  progress  was  slow  and  fitful.  John  Calvin 
was  the  chief  reformer,  and  was  ban- 
ished. He  took  refuge  in  Switzer- 
land, where  he  died  in  1 564.  But 
he  left  devoted  followers  in  France. 

Among  these.  Admiral  Coligni,  a 
favorite  of  Catharine  de  Medici  when 
she  was  acting  regent,  was  one  of 
the  most  conspicuous  leaders  of  the 
Huguenots,  as  the  French  Protest- 
ants were  called.  All  parties  ad- 
mired him  for  his  valor  and  his  vir- 
tues and  his  eminent  deeds  in  the 
service  of  his  country.  He  per- 
suaded Catharine  to  attempt  to 
reconcile,  by  a conference,  the  con 
tending  religious  factions.  He  failed 
When  the  peace  conference  ended 
in  a quarrel,  war  ensued.  The  Duke 
of  Guise,  a descendant  of  Charle 
magne,  and  claimant  of  the  French 
throne,  whom  Catherine  feared  and 
hated,  led  the  Roman  Catholics. 

The  Prince  of  Condd  led  the  Protest- 
ants. The  latter  being  greatly  in 
the  minority  suffered  much.  Grieved 
because  of  their  forlorn  condition, 

Coligni  resolved  to  procure  an  asylum  for  them  in  the  milder  regions  of 
North  America,  far  removed  from  civilized  men,  where  they  might  enjoy 
perfect  religious  and  civil  freedom,  unmolested  by  foreign  powers  or  hostile 
factions. 

Coligni  sought  an  audience  with  Catharine.  It  was  readily  granted. 
That  proud  and  unprincipled  daughter  of  Lorenzo  de  Medici,  was  then  a 
little  more  than  forty  years  of  age,  stout  and  fair,  and  was  wielding  power 


MARTIN  LUTHER. 


Ii8 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  1. 


with  a prodigal  hand.  Coligni  found  her  seated  on  a rich  divan  covered 
with  blue  damask  satin.  On  her  head  was  a coronet  sparkling  with  a single 
large  diamond.  Around  her  plump  neck  glittered  a circlet  of  gold  and 
pearls,  emeralds  and  rubies.  She  wore  a skirt  of  gold  embroidered  white 
silk,  and  over  this  a rich  robe  of  royal  purple  velvet,  trimmed  with  a narrow 
band  of  ermine  at  the  front  and  bottom,  and  with  a close-fitting  bodice 
edged  at  the  top  with  rich  lace.  Her  full  puffed  sleeves  were  of  the  finest 
linen  and  lace,  with  brilliant  gems  at  the  wrists.  A gold  chain  fastened  at 
her  bosom  with  a diamond  brooch  extended  to  her  feet  and  terminated  in  a 
golden  cross  studded  with  seed  pearls.  Near  her,  and  playing  with  a fawn- 
colored  Italian  greyhound,  was  her  royal  son,  who  had  lately  ascended  the 
throne  of  France  as  Charles  the  Ninth.  The  king’s  hair  hung  in  ringlets 
about  his  shoulders,  for  he  was  a boy  only  ten  or  twelve  years  of  age,  and 
his  fair  complexion  was  heightened  by  his  rich  suit  of  royal  purple  velvet, 
with  slashed  sleeves,  revealing  white  linen  beneath.  Only  a single  minister 
of  state  was  present,  and  he  and  a young  woman,  a court  favorite  and  cousin 
of  the  King  of  Navarre,  who  sat  by  a vine-trailed  window  embroidering, 
were  the  only  companions  of  royalty  when  the  Admiral  entered  the  room. 

Coligni  was  tall,  elegant  in  figure  and  deportment,  grave  in  aspect,  with 
flowing  hair  and  beard  slightly  streaked  with  gray,  for  he  was  about  forty- 
five  years  of  age.  He  was  dressed  in  the  uniform  of  his  rank,  and  carried  in 
his  hand  a rich  green  velvet  cap,  bearing  a long  ostrich  plume.  His  doublet 
of  crimson  velvet  with  short  skirt  was  sprinkled  with  golden  lilies,  and  encir- 
cled with  a belt  from  which  depended  a straight  sword.  The  sleeves  ter- 
minated at  the  elbows,  and  the  rest  of  the  arm  to  the  wrist  was  covered  with 
embroidered  linen.  His  trunk-hose  of  velvet  extended  to  the  middle  of  the 
thighs,  and  was  slashed  and  elegantly  embroidered  with  gold  thread.  Up  to 
this,  tight-fitting  stockings  wrought  of  fine  white  wool,  extended,  and  on  his 
feet  were  buskins  of  polished  russet  leather,  sparkling  with  diamond  buttons 
that  fastened  silk  rosettes  to  the  insteps.  From  his  shoulders  hung  an  open 
short  Spanish  cloak  of  blue  velvet,  and  around  his  neck  was  a modest  ruff. 
A massive  gold  chain,  bearing  the  Order  of  St.  Louis,  vv’as  seen  upon  his 
breast.  Such  was  the  group  who  appeared  in  the  audience-chamber  of  the 
Regent  of  France,  late  in  the  year  1561,  to  confer  upon  the  subject  of  dis- 
coveries, and  the  planting  of  a Protestant  colony  in  America. 

That  conference  was  short.  In  few  words  Coligni  set  forth  the  happiness 
which  the  carrying  out  of  his  scheme  would  confer  upon  his  suffering 
countrymen  ; and  he  dwelt  specially  upon  the  fact  that  it  might  redound  to 
the  glory  of  France.  Catharine,  who  was  a pauper  in  moral  and  religious 
convictions,  and  had  espoused  the  cause  of  the  Prote.stants  only  as  a measure 


Chap.  X.  COLIGNI’S  EXPEDITION  TO  FLORIDA.  1 19 

of  state  policy,  was  then  the  friend  of  Coligni.  She  readily  granted  all  that 
he  desired,  in  the  name  of  the  little  king  then  playing  with  the  greyhound  ; 
and  the  child’s  signature,  hardly  legible,  was  afterward  placed  to  the  charter 
given  to  the  admiral,  by  which  he  was  authorized  to  send  an  expedition  to  ' 
Florida  and  establish  a colony  there. 

Coligni  lost  no  time  in  making  use  of  his  privilege.  He  quickly  fitted 
out  two  vessels  of  the  character  of  Spanish  caravels,  chiefly  for  a voyage  of 
discovery,  and  placed  them  under  the 
command  of  John  Ribault,  an  experi- 
enced mariner  of  Dieppe,  who  was  an  ear- 
nest Protestant.  Ribault  sailed  from  Havre 
/de  Grace  on  the  i8th  of  February,  1562, 
with  sailors  and  soldiers,  and  a few  gentle- 
men of  fortune  who  were  prompted  by 
curiosity,  the  love  of  adventure,  or  the 
prospect  of  gain,  to  accompany  him. 

They  arrived  off  the  coast  of  Anastacia 
Island  (it  is  supposed)  below  the  site  of 
St.  Augustine,  at  the  close  of  April.  Sail- 
ing along  the  “ sweet-smelling  coast  ” 
northward,  the  two  vessels  entered  the 
broad  mouth  of  the  River  St.  John,  where 
the  company  landed  and  were  most  kindly 
received  by  the  natives.  The  Frenchmen 
were  delighted  with  everything — the  soft 
climate  ; the  sweetest  blossoms  ; the  mag- 
nificent trees  festooned  from  root  to  top 
with  grape-vines ; birds  of  gay  plumage 
and  sweetest  notes;  and  mulberry  trees, 
on  “ the  boughs  of  which  were  silkworms 
in  marvelous  numbers,”  and  with  people 
of  finest  forms  and  kindliest  natures. 

They  seemed  to  have  entered  a paradise. 

It  is  a thing  unspeakable,  wrote  Captain  Ribault,  “ to  consider  the  things 
that  be  seen  there,  and  shall  be  found  more  and  more  in  this  incomparable 
land,  which,  never  yet  broken  with  plough  irons,  bringeth  forth  all  things 
according  to  its  first  nature,  wherewith  the  eternal  God  endowed  it.” 

Under  the  shadow  of  a wide-spreading  magnolia  tree  laden  with  blossoms 
at  the  edge  of  a green  savannah,  with  half-naked  men,  women  and  children, 
painted  and  decorated  with  gold  and  pearls — wondering  sun-worshippers — 
q 


DUKE  OF  GUISE. 


120 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  I. 


standing  a little  way  off,  the  Christians  knelt  upon  the  soft  sward  and  poured 
forth  thanksgiving  to  God  for  his  mercy  in  giving  them  a safe  voyage  to 
such  a delightful  land.  It  was  a bright  May-day.  At  twilight  they  returned 
to  their  ships,  and  early  the  next  morning  the  whole  company  went  ashore 
again,  in  small  boats,  carrying  a column  of  hard  stone  upon  which  was 
carved  the  arms  of  the  French  king.  They  set  it  up  on  a broad  grassy 
knoll  surrounded  by  tall  cypress  and  spreading  palmetto  trees  and  sweet 
flowering  shrubs ; and  with  the  usual  ceremonies,  they  took  possession  of 
the  country  in  the  name  of  Charles  the  Ninth.  They  were  probably  not  far 
from  the  lowest  point  to  which  Verazzani  had  sailed  almost  forty  years 
before. 

On  the  3d  of  May  the  Huguenots  went  northward,  visiting  numerous 
islands  and  inlets,  and  toward  the  end  of  the  month  they  entered  the  fine 
harbor  of  Port  Royal  on  the  coast  of  South  Carolina,  passing  the  high  shore 
of  Hilton  Head  on  the  left  and  the  low  grounds  of  St.  Helena  Island  on  the 
right.  They  anchored  off  Port  Royal  Island  and  went  in  small  boats  up  the 
Broad  River,  and  into  the  Coosaw  and  the  Combahee.  They  were  in  the 
land  where  D’Allyon  had  committed  his  atrocities  and  met  retributive  justice 
about  half  a century  before,  yet  they  were  kindly  received  by  the  natives 
and  secured  the  friendship  of  the  Indians  by  giving  them  kindness  in  return. 
Charmed  with  everything,  Ribault,  after  exploring  the  surrounding  country 
several  days,  called  his  people  together  on  Port  Royal  Island  near  the  site 
of  the  present  town  of  Beaufort.  He  told  them  that  he  thought  they  were 
at  the  best  place  for  a colony  he  had  yet  seen.  He  spoke  of  the  advantages 
of  a settlement  there,  and  the  glory  they  might  acquire  for  themselves  and 
France  by  planting  in  that  beautiful  and  fertile  land  the  seed  of  a great 
empire.  Who  will  undertake  the  glorious  work?  he  asked.  The  result  was 
marvelous  even  to  that  hopeful  man.  So  many  were  anxious  to  remain,  that 
if  all  of  them  had  stayed,  Ribault  would  not  have  had  sufficient  men  to 
navigate  the  ship  back  to  France.  A colony  of  thirty  persons  was  organized 
by  the  choice  of  Captain  Albert  De  la  Pierria  as  governor.  At  the  request 
of  the  volunteers,  Ribault  built  them  a fort  and  provisioned  it  before  his 
departure,  and  named  it  Fort  Charles  (Fort  Carolus  or  Carolina)  in  honor  of 
his  king.  It  was  constructed  on  the  eastern  bank  of  Port  Royal  Island, 
about  a mile  and  a half  from  Beaufort,  where  its  remains  were  yet  visible 
when  I visited  the  spot  in  the  spring  of  1866.  Near  it  were  magnificent 
live-oaks  draped  with  the  trailing  Spanish  moss,  which  were  there,  probably, 
when  Ribault  built  the  fort. 

After  completing  the  little  fortress,  Ribault  said  to  the  men  who  were  to 
remain  : “ Be  kind  to  each  other,  and  prudent  with  your  provisions.  Let 


Chap.  X. 


EMIGRANTS  IN  FLORIDA  NEGLECTED. 


I2I 


each  love  God  and  his  neighbor.  Your  interests  are  mutual.  Let  no 
jealousies  grow,  nor  disputes  make  you  live  apart,  but  cultivate  brotherly 
love  and  you  will  prosper.  Farewell ! ” Then  he  went  on  board  of  his  vessel, 
and  both  ships  sailed  out  of  the  harbor  after  exchanging  salutes  with  the 
fort  by  firing  guns.  It  was  then  near  the  middle  of  June,  and  Ribault 
attempted  to  explore  the  coasts  northward,  but  foul  weather  opposed  him 
and  he  sailed  for  France,  whence  he  expected  to  return  immediately  with 
supplies  for  the  colony. 

Coligny  was  delighted  with  Ribault’s  report,  but  he  was  then  unable  to  do 
anything  for  his  colony.  A civil  war  was  raging  in  France  between  the 
theological  factions — Roman  Catholics  and  Huguenots — with  unrelenting 
violence.  The  monarch,  the  court  and  Coligni  were  so  involved  in  the  strife 
that  Ribault  pleaded  in  vain  for  help  for  the  colony  in  Florida.  As  soon  as 


CARTIER.  CORTEZ.  COLIGNI.  DE  SOTO.  VERAZ2ANI. 


it  subsided,  the  admiral  renewed  his  efforts  in  its  behalf.  The  regent  and 
her  son  provided  him  with  money  and  three  armed  ships— the  Elizabeth  of 
Honfleur^  Captain  John  Lucas;  the  Petite  Britain,  Captain  Vasseur,  and  the 
Falcon,  Captain  Marchant.  The  little  squadron  was  placed  under  the  general 
command  of  Renb  Laudonnifere,  who  accompanied  Ribault  in  the  preceding 
voyage.  With  him  went  many  young  men  of  family  and  fortune ; mechan- 
ics and  laborers;  Jacob  Le  Moyne  as  artist  and  geographer  to  the  expedi- 
tion, and  two  skillful  pilots,  the  brothers  Vasseur,  of  Dieppe.  Laudonniere 
left  Havre  de  Grace  on  the  22d  of  April,  1564,  and  at  the  end  of  two  months 


122 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  I. 


he  saw  the  coast  of  Florida ; but  he  did  not  go  to  the  relief  of  the  colony  at 
Port  Royal  Island.  Why  ? 

The  colonists  at  Port  Royal  cultivated  the  friendship  of  the  Indians,  and 
were  very  happy  for  awhile,  but  when  the  provisions  began  to  fail  and 
Ribault  did  not  return,  they  lamented  their  folly  in  not  exercising  fore- 
thought. They  had  not  cultivated  a rood  of  land  nor  made  any  other  pro- 
visions for  sustenance,  and  they  were  soon  compelled  to  look  to  their  Indian 
neighbors  for  their  daily  food.  That  was  then  scanty ; and  being  informed 
of  a rich  country  and  a munificent  king  further  south,  a part  of  the  company 
went  thither  in  a little  pinnace  which  they  had  constructed,  and  returned 
with  it  loaded  with  corn  and  beans.  They  had  evidently  been  to  the  banks 
of  the  Savannah  River,  and  there  they  had  beheld  a marvelous  vision  in  the 
capital  of  King  Ouad6.  His  house  was  adorned  with  tapestry  formed  of 
richly-colored  feathers  ; white  couches  finely  embroidered  and  fringed  with 
scarlet ; handsome  mats  made  of  woven  split  cane ; and  the  monarch  and 
his  young  queen  richly  adorned  with  golden  chains  and  strings  of  great 
pearls.  Better  than  these  were  his  large  granaries  of  food,  from  which  their 
pinnace  was  so  bountifully  supplied  ; but  their  treasure  was  destined  to  sud- 
denly disappear.  Soon  after  their  return  to  Fort  Charles,  their  house,  in 
which  everything  was  stored,  was  burned,  and  they  were  left  desolate. 
Their  savage  neighbors  did  all  in  their  power  to  relieve  their  distress,  and  the 
munificent  Ouadd  furnished  them  with  another  pinnace  full  of  corn  and 
beans. 

Dissension,  the  child  of  idleness,  now  appeared  among  the  colonists. 
Governor  Pierria  applied  the  rules  of  discipline  so  harshly,  that  the  people 
were  exasperated,  rose  in  mutiny  and  put  him  to  death.  They  chose  Nicolas 
Barrd  to  be  their  leader,  but  their  forlorn  condition  produced  intense  discon- 
tent. Gaunt  famine  was  before  them,  and  a growing  distrust  of  the  French- 
men which  appeared  among  the  Indians  menaced  them  with  starvation. 
They  determined  to  desert  Port  Royal  and  return  to  France.  With  the 
assistance  of  their  neighbors  they  constructed  a frail  brigantine  and  sailed 
for  home.  She  was  scantily  provisioned ; and  calms  and  headwinds  kept 
them  so  long  upon  the  ocean,  that  their  food  was  almost  exhausted.  Then 
a furious  tempest  beat  upon  their  frail  barque  and  nearly  engulfed  her.  A 
tremendous  wave  turned  her  upon  her  side,  and  so  she  floated.  Starvation 
came.  The  sufferers  tried  to  subsist  upon  their  shoes  and  leather  doublets, 
but  one  after  another  died  and  fell  into  the  sea.  The  living  had  concluded 
to  make  the  next  victim  their  food,  when  another  wave  righted  the  crazy 
vessel,  with  some  of  the  provisions  uninjured.  Half  filled  with  water,  she 
nevertheless  floated.  Again  starvation  came,  and  lots  were  about  to  be  cast 


Chap.  X. 


HUGUENOTS  IN  ENGLAND. 


123 


to  determine  who  should  be  made  food  for  the  rest,  when  there  was  a feeble 
cry  of  “ Land !”  from  one  of  them.  They  were,  indeed,  in  sight  of  a green 
shore.  Very  soon  a small  English  vessel  came  to  their  relief.  One  of  her 
seamen  was  a Frenchman  who  had  sailed  with  Ribault,  and  recognized  the 
famished  men.  He  gave  them  food  and  drink,  and  told  them  of  home  and 
friends.  Upon  what  shore  they  were  landed,  it  is  not  known,  but  it  is 
certain  that  a part  of  these  French  adventurers  were  taken  into  the  presence 
of  Queen  Elizabeth  of  England,  and  that  their  account  of  the  beauties  of 
Florida  created  an  inten.se  desire  on  the  part  of  the  English  to  colonize  that 
region. 


UVE-OAK  GROVE  NEAR  FORT  CHARLES. 


Laudonnifere  and  his  companions  resolved  to  make  the  banks  of  the  St. 
John’s  River,  in  Florida,  their  abiding  place.  At  a council,  he  said : “ If  we 
should  pass  further  north  to  go  in  search  of  Port  Royal,  this  step  would  be 
neither  very  advantageous  nor  convenient,  at  least  if  we  may  rely  on  the 
report  of  those  who  have  dwelt  there  a long  time.”  He  evidently  had  heard 
the  report  of  those  who  had  abandoned  Fort  Charles,  before  he  left  France. 
This  answers  the  question.  Why  did  he  not  go  to  Port  Royal  ? 

Laudonniere  anchored  his  ships  in  the  St.  John’s  where  Ribault  had 
rested  his,  and  he  was  received  with  marked  kindness  by  the  chief  who 


124 


OUR  COUNTRY, 


Book  1. 


dwelt  near.  He  came  to  the  captain  with  several  of  his  noblemen  gayly 
plumed  and  wearing  short  cloaks  of  marten  skins  or  feathers,  and  besought 
him  to  go  with  them  to  the  column  which  Ribault  had  set  up.  When  they 
came  to  the  grassy  knoll  they  found  the  pillar  surrounded  with  palm  leaf 
baskets  of  corn  and  garlanded  with  fresh  sweet  flowers.  Savages  then  kissed 
the  stone  with  much  reverence,  extending  their  arms  toward  the  skies  as 
they  assumed  their  erect  position.  They  requested  the  Frenchmen  also  to 
kiss  the  stone,  which  they  did.  The  attendants  of  the  chief  then  brought 
spring-water  to  their  guests  in  ornamented  earthen  jars,  and  presented  to 
Laudonniere  two  live  eagles.  It  was  a ceremonial  token  of  friendship,  which 
pleased  the  captain,  and  with  the  permission  of  the  cacique  he  proceeded  to 
erect  a fort  on  the  south  bank  of  the  river.  In  this  w'ork  the  Indians  gave 
him  great  assistance,  for  they  were  very  expert  palmetto-leaf  thatchers,  and 
covered  the  barracks  wdth  excellent  roofs.  When  the  work  was  finished,  it 
was  called  Fort  Carolina,  in  honor  of  King  Charles. 

Very  soon  rumors  came  to  the  willing  ears  of  the  Frenchmen  of  mines 
of  gold  and  silver  in  the  interior,  and  such  a thirst  for  the  precious  metals 
was  created,  that  an  expedition  went  far  up  the  river,  in  small  boats,  in 
search  ot  them.  Everywhere  they  had  heard  of  gold  and  precious  stones 
“ further  on,”  and  they  returned  with  such  extravagant  stories  of  their 
abundance  somew'here  far  inland  in  the  hands  of  dusky  kings,  that  the  colo- 
nists were  made  half  crazy.  The  fever  was  at  its  height  when,  in  July,  the 
ships  were  sent  back  to  France  for  supplies.  Every  man  seemed  anxious  to 
seek  treasure  on  his  own  account,  and  Laudonniere  was  compelled  to 
threaten  severe  penalties  against  any  person  who  should  traffic  for  gold  or 
precious  stones,  excepting  for  the  benefit  of  the  whole  company.  The  delu- 
sion soon  vanished.  When  it  was  known  that  the  stories  of  the  savages 
about  the  abundance  of  precious  metals  and  stones  in  the  interior  were  sheer 
fictions,  the  gold  fever  instantly  subsided,  and  was  followed  by  indolence  and 
disappointment,  with  their  attendant  evils.  The  bane  of  the  Port  Royal 
colony  w^as  seen  in  this.  There  were  too  many  idle  and  improvident  persons 
among  them — too  many  “ gentlemen  ” who  would  not  soil  their  hands  w'ith 
labor.  Discontent  soon  created  a mutinous  spirit,  and  plots  against  the  life 
of  Laudonniere  were  planned  and  discovered.  At  length,  some  of  the  sol- 
diers and  seamen  seized  two  small  vessels,  and  sailing  toward  Cuba,  engaged 
in  piracy  in  the  West  Indian  Seas.  On  their  return,  three  months  afterward, 
the  ringleaders  were  shot.  Great  excitement  ensued,  and  the  colonists  were 
kept  from  open  mutiny  only  by  being  engaged  in  explorations  of  the  country, 
or  in  wars  wdth  the  enemies  of  friendly  chiefs  around  them.  They  neglected 
the  rich  soil,  and  famine  threatened  them.  Discontent  became  more  ram- 


Chap.  X. 


FRESH  COLONISTS  ARRIVE  IN  FLORIDA. 


125 


pant,  and  the  captain  determined  to  return  to  France  with  the  whole  com- 
pany. They  were  delayed  for  want  of  sufficient  vessels.  Meanwhile,  Sir 
John  Hawkins,  of  England,  sailed  into  the  St.  John’s  with  several  ships. 
Laudonnifere  bought  one  of  them,  and  was  about  to  embark  for  Europe  in 
her,  with  his  whole  company,  when  Ribault  appeared  with  a squadron  of 


STARVING  HUGUENOTS  ON  THE  SEA. 


seven  ships  from  France,  bringing  a fresh  company  of  colonists.  Amongst 
them  were  several  women  and  children.  He  had  sailed  from  Dieppe  late  in 
May,  with  a commission  as  governor  of  all  the  French  on  that  coast,  and 
arrived  at  the  St.  John’s  at  near  the  close  of  August,  1565. 

A few  days  after  Ribault’s  arrival,  five  ships  were  seen  coming  in  from 
the  sea.  They  anchored  within  speaking  distance  of  the  French  ships  at  the 
bar,  and  after  a long  silence  the  commander  of  the  intruding  squadron 


126 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  I. 


hailed  the  nearest  vessel.  He  was  answered,  “France.”  “And  what  are 
you  doing  in  the  territories  of  King  Philip?”  he  asked.  “Begone!”  The 
questioner  was  a Spaniard,  and  the  Spanish  monarch  claimed  all  Florida  by 
right  of  pre-discovery.  The  Spanish  officer  then  asked  : “ Are  you  Catholics 
or  Lutherans  ? ” and  was  answered,  “ Lutherans  of  the  new  religion.”  The 
French  officer  then  inquired  who  the  Spaniard  was  and  what  was  his 
errand,  when  (according  to  Barcia,  the  Spanish  historian)  he  replied : “ I am 
Pedro  Menendez,  commander  of  this  armament,  which  belongs  to  the  king 
of  Spain,  Don  Philip  the  Second.  I.  have  come  hither  to  hang  and  destroy 
all  the  Lutherans  whom  I shall  find  either  on  land  or  sea,  according  to  my 
orders  received  from  the  king,  which  are  so  precise  as  to  deprive  me  of  the 
power  of  saving  any  one  whatsoever ; and  these  orders  I shall  execute  to  the 
letter ; but  if  I should  meet  with  any  Catholic  on  board  your  vessels,  he 
shall  receive  good  treatment.  As  for  the  heretics,  they  shall  die.” 

Ribault  was  not  taken  altogether  by  surprise,  for  just  as  he  was  about  to 
sail  from  Dieppe,  he  was  handed  a letter  from  Coligni,  in  which  the  admiral 
wrote  in  postscript : “ While  closing  this  letter,  I have  received  certain 
advice  that  Don  Pedro  Menendez  is  about  to  depart  from  Spain  to  the  coast 
of  Florida.  You  will  take  care  not  to  suffer  him  to  encroach  upon  us,  any 
more  than  he  would  that  we  should  encroach  upon  him.” 

The  threat  of  Menendez  and  the  hostile  attitude  of  his  ships  caused  the 
captains  of  the  French  vessels  to  cut  their  cables  and  put  to  sea.  The 
Spanish  vessels  followed,  firing  the  contents  of  heavy  bow-guns  after  the 
fugitives.  They  chased  them  far,  but  in  vain.  “ These  enraged  devils,” 
wrote  Mendoza,  the  chaplain  of  Menendez’  squadron,  “ are  such  adroit  sea- 
men, and  manoeuvred  so  well,  that  we  could  not  take  one  of  them.”  The 
Spaniards  finally  turned  back  toward  the  coast,  followed  by  the  Frenchmen, 
who  saw  the  smaller  Spanish  vessels  enter  a river  several  leagues  south  of 
the  St.  John’s,  and  the  larger  ones,  with  the  galleon  of  Menendez,  anchor  at 
its  mouth.  They  also  saw  Spanish  soldiers  and  provisions  landed  not  far 
above  that  anchorage.  With  this  important  news  the  Frenchmen  hastened 
back  to  the  St.  John’s  and  reported  to  Ribault  all  they  had  seen.  He  imme- 
diately prepared  to  go  in  search  of  his  enemies  and  attack  them  with  his 
ships  and  his  whole  land  force. 

Whilst  Ribault  was  holding  a council  in  which  Laudonni&re  opposed  the 
measure  suggested  by  the  governor,  an  Indian  came  with  tidings  that  the 
Spaniards  were  fortifying  themselves  on  the  bank  of  the  river  where  they 
had  landed.  Ribault  believed  that  they  were  preparing  to  march  overland 
and  attack  Fort  Carolina,  and  he  hastened  his  preparations  for  seizing  their 
.ships,  attacking  them  in  their  quarters,  and  so  spoiling  their  scheme  and 


Chap.  X. 


FRENCHMEN  AND  SPANIARDS  IN  FLORIDA. 


127 


possibly  destroying  them  totally  or  driving  them  from  the  coast.  Was  he 
sure  that  he  could  seize  their  ships?  The  more  cautious  Laudonnifere 
thought  not,  and  still  opposed  the  perilous  expedition.  The  more  fiery 
Ribault  persisted  in  his  resolution,  and  gathering  as  many  soldiers  on  three 
ships  (his  larger  one,  the  Trinity,  being  yet  at  sea)  as  they  could  conveniently 
carry,  he  sailed  out  of  the  river  and  down  the  straight  coast,  in  full  expecta- 
tion of  gaining  a complete  victory.  He  was  sorely  disappointed.  A dead 
calm  and  a very  low  tide,  when  he  first  approached  the  enemy,  prevented  his 
attacking  the  Spanish  ships,  and  whilst  he  was  waiting  for  a favoring  breeze 
and  a flood  tide,  there  arose  a very  sudden  and  violent  storm  which  drove 
the  French  vessels  far  out  to  sea,  and  exposed  both  ships  and  men  to  a sad 
fate,  as  we  shall  observe  hereafter. 

Meanwhile,  Menendez  dispatched  one  of  his  small  vessels  to  Spain,  and 
the  galleon  to  Cuba,  the  latter  for  the  purpose  of  bringing  to  Florida  a rein- 
forcement of  Spanish  troops  known  to  be  at  Havana.  But  the  galleon  St. 
Pclayo — a large  three-deck  ship — did  not  reach  its  destination.  There  were 
.several  French  prisoners  on  board  of  her  whom  Menendez  had  ordered  to  be 
sent  to  the  Inquisition  in  Spain  by  way  of  St.  Domingo.  Soon  after  the 
great  ship  put  to  sea,  these  prisoners  joined  the  sailors  in  a mutiny,  and 
taking  the  command  from  the  officers,  they  sailed  for  Europe  and  entered  a 
port  in  Denmark. 


<pj 


CHAPTER  XI. 


MENENDEZ — HIS  LANDING  ON  THE  COAST  OF  FLORIDA — THE  FRENCH  ON  THE  ST.  JOHN’S  MAS- 
SACRED BY  THE  SPANIARDS — COMPLAINTS  OF  THE  OUTRAGE  UNHEEDED  BY  THE  FRENCH 
MONARCH  — THE  CHEVALIER  DE  GOURGES  AVENGES  THE  CRIME  BY  RETALIATION — THE 
FRENCH  COURT  FAVORS  THE  ROMAN  CATHOLICS — WICKEDNESS  OF  CATHARINE  DE  MEDICI — 
THE  MURDER  OF  COLIGNI — QUEEN  ELIZABETH  ESPOUSES  COLIGNi’S  PLAN  FOR  SETTLEMENT  IN- 
AMERICA — REPORTS  CONCERNING  THE  WARMER  REGIONS  OF  AMERICA  RECEIVED  FROM  WALTER 

RALEIGH— Frobisher’s  voyage  in  search  of  a northwest  passage  to  India,  and  for 
GOLD — his  discoveries — THE  GLOBE  CIRCUMNAVIGATED  BY  DRAKE — HIS  EXPLOITS  AGAINST 
THE  SPANIARDS. 

MENENDEZ  (or  Melendez)  seems  to  have  been  rather  too  harshly 
treated  by  historians,  for  his  career  in  Florida  was  not  wholly 
voluntary.  He  was  a native  of  Avila,  in  Spain,  and  at  the  period 
under  consideration,  he  was  about  forty-six  years  of  age.  He  had  already  . 
risen  to  the  highest  rank  in  the  Spanish  navy,  and  was  a man  of  large  for- 
tune. In  1554,  he  commanded  the  vessel  which  bore  his  king  to  England  to 
marry  Queen  Mary;  and  in  1561,  he  commanded  the  great  treasure-fleet  of 
galleons  on  their  voyage  from  Mexico  to  Spain.  One  of  the  vessels  contain- 
ing his  son  and  several  relatives  and  friends  disappeared,  and  was  never 
heard  of  afterward.  When  he  had  delivered  the  fleet  in  Spain,  he  asked  per- 
mission to  go  back  in  search  of  the  lost  vessel,  but  was  then  refused. 
Finally,  after  two  or  three  years  delay,  his  request  was  granted,  but  on 
condition  that  he  should  explore  and  colonize  Florida.  He  fitted  out  an 
expedition  for  the  purpose  at  his  own  expense,  but  when  he  was  about  to 
sail,  orders  came  to  him  from  Philip  to  exterminate  all  Protestants  he  might 
find  there,  or  in  whatever  corner  of  the  world  he  should  discover  them,  on 
land  or  sea,  in  forests  or  marshes. 

Philip  had  heard  that  the  Huguenots  who  had  fled  from  persecution  in 
France  were  hiding  in  the  forests  beyond  the  Atlantic,  and  his  zeal  was  so 
kindled  for  the  domination  of  his  church,  that  he  gave  the  order  to  Menen- 
dez  to  extirpate  the  heretics.  The  mariner  had  no  alternative  but  to  obey 
or  lose  the  opportunity  of  searching  for  his  son.  He  was  not  even  allowed 
to  choose  the  alternative,  for  disobedience  would  have  led  him  to  the  dun- 
geons of  the  Inquisition.  So  he  obeyed.  The  king,  regarding  it  as  a holy 
enterprise,  added  ships  and  treasure.  Soldiers  and  seamen  flocked  to  the 


Chap.  XL 


SPANIARDS  ATTACK  THE  FRENCH. 


129 


standard  of  Menendez  in  great  numbers,  and  he  sailed  with  a fleet  of  eleven 
ships  (one  of  them  a galleon  of  nine  hundred  tons)  with  over  twenty-six 
hundred  persons,  consisting,  besides  the  soldiers  and  sailors,  of  adventurers 
and  priests.  This  was  the  armament,  the  sailing  of  which  Ribault  had  been 
apprised  by  Coligni.  Storms  and  other  disasters  in  the  West  Indies  scat- 
tered it,  and  when  it  arrived  on  the  coast  of  Florida,  it  was  reduced  to  a 
squadron  of  only  five  vessels  (one  of  them  the  great  ship),  bearing  about  a 
thousand  persons  of  all  descriptions. 

When  Menendez  landed  from  the  galleon,  on  the  coast  of  Florida,  he 
made  the  event  an  occasion  for  a pompous  ceremonial.  As  he  left  the  great 
ship  in  a boat  with  six  oarsmen,  accompanied  by  Mendoza,  his  chaplain,  and 
followed  by  other  boats  filled  with  gentlemen  and  ecclesiastics,  loud  trumpets 
sounded,  drums  beat,  cannon  thundered,  and  flags  were  displayed  on  the 
ship  and  on  the  shore,  where  his  soldiers  had  already  begun  the  construction 
of  a fort.  As  they  touched  the  beach,  the  chaplain  walked  before,  bearing  a 
large  cross  and  chanting  a hymn.  Menendez  followed  with  his  train,  carrj.'- 
ing  aloft,  with  his  own  hand,  the  royal  standard  of  Spain  unfurled.  He  and 
his  followers  reverently  knelt  before  the  priest,  w'ho  was  arrayed  in  rich 
sacerdotal  robes,  and  kissed  the  sacred  symbol  of  the  atonement  which 
Mendoza  held  in  his  hand.  It  was  firmly  planted  in  the  sand  by  the  side  of 
the  flagstaff  from  which  fluttered  the  royal  banner  in  a gentle  breeze  ; and  a 
shield  bearing  the  arms  of  Spain  was  leaned  against  the  cross.  Then 
Menendez  drew  his  sword  and  formally  took  possession  of  the  whole  country 
in  the  name  of  King  Philip  of  Spain.  On  that  spot,  and  with  such  conse- 
cration, were  laid  the  foundations  of  the  city  of  St.  Augustine,  in  Florida, 
forty  years  earlier  than  those  of  any  other  town  in  America,  north  of  Mexico. 

Menendez  soon  marched  upon  Fort  Carolina,  on  the  St.  Johns,  to  execute 
his  dreadful  mission.  His  journey  was  in  incessant  rain  over  oozy  ground, 
but  zeal  gave  strength  to  his  four  hundred  soldiers.  The  feeble  Huguenot 
fort  was  in  command  of  Laudonnifere,  who  had  only  a handful  of  soldiers 
(for  a greater  portion  had  gone  with  Ribault),  and  he  was  burdened  with 
civilians,  men,  women  and  children.  With  the  ferocity  of  tigers,  the  Span- 
iards fell  upon  them.  They  were  close  to  the  fort  before  their  presence  was 
suspected.  No  person  was  spared  on  whom  the  assailants  could  lay 
hands.  In  their  beds,  in  prayers  for  mercy,  in  flight,  they  were  slaughtered. 
A few  escaped  to  the  woods  without  food  and  with  scanty  clothing.  Many 
perished  for  want  of  food,  and  a few  made  their  way  to  two  small  French 
ships,  in  which  they  sailed  for  Europe.  Among  them  was  Laudonniere. 
According  to  the  chaplain,  Mendoza,  one  hundred  and  forty-two  of  the 
Huguenots  were  slain,  whilst  the  Spaniards  did  not  lose  a man.  The  women 


130 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  I. 


and  children  were  butchered.  A few  men  were  hanged  upon  trees,  and  over 
them  was  placed  the  inscription  : 

Not  as  Frenchmen,  but  as  Lutherans. 

Leaving  a garrison  of  three  hundred  men  in  Fort  Carolina,  and  naming 
it  Fort  Matheo,  Menendez  returned  in  triumph  to  St.  Augustine.  His 
chaplain  has  left  a glowing  account  of  his  reception  there,  and  bestows 
unstinted  praise  on  that  leader  as  one  of  the  most  zealous  of  Christians. 
He  was  supported,  he  says,  in  his  great  fatigue  by  a “burning  desire  to 
serve  our  Lord  and  destroy  this  Lutheran  sect,  the  enemy  of  our  holy 
Catholic  religion.” 

Ribault’s  vessels,  meanwhile,  had  all  been  wrecked  near  Cape  Canaveral, 
on  the  Florida  coast.  All  of  his  people  were  saved  from  the  sea,  but  per- 
ished at  the  hands  of  the  less  merciful  Spaniards.  They  tried  to  make  their 
way  to  Fort  Carolina,  ignorant  of  its  sad  fate.  Ribault,  with  one  hundred 
and  fifty  men,  was  betrayed  by  one  of  the  sailors  who  had  deserted  Lau- 
donniere  and  turned  pirate,  and  under  a promise  of  mercy  he  cast  himself 
upon  the  clemency  of  Menendez.  That  leader  proceeded  to  put  to  death 
the  brave  captain  and  his  companions.  “Seeing  that  they  were  Lutherans,”  * 
says  Mendoza,  “ the  General  condemned  them  all  to  death  ; but  as  I was  a 
priest,  and  had  the  bowels  of  a man,  I besought  him  to  accord  to  me  the 
favor,  that  he  would  not  put  to  death  those  whom  we  should  discover  to  be 
Christians.  He  granted  my  request.  I made  inquiry,  and  found  ten  or 
twelve,  whom  we  selected  from  the  number.  All  the  others  were  executed 
because  they  were  Lutherans,  enemies  of  our  holy  Catholic  faith.”  They 
were  led  out  in  parcels  of  ten,  and  with  their  hands  tied  behind  them  and  at 
a line  drawn  in  the  sand  with  a cane,  by  Menendez,  they  were  butchered. 
So,  also,  says  Barcia,  the  Spanish  historian,  who  regarded  Menendez  as  the 
chosen  instrument  of  the  Almighty  to  vindicate  his  cause.  Mendoza  tells  us, 
when  writing  of  the  massacre  at  Fort  Carolina,  that  “the  Holy  Spirit 
enlightened  the  understanding”  of  the  commander  “to  enable  him  to  gain 
so  great  a victory.” 

A knowledge  of  these  horrid  crimes  in  Florida  and  the  avowed  cause  of 
their  commission,  excited  the  greatest  indignation  throughout  Europe,  and 
the  unchristian  spirit  of  revenge  glowed  in  many  a manly  bosom.  The 
French  Roman  Catholics  were  greatly  moved  by  this  outrage  upon  their 
countrymen  by  the  hated  Spaniards.  The  relatives  of  the  victims  appealed 
to  the  French  king  to  vindicate  the  wrongs  of  the  emigrants  who  had  been 
sent  out  under  his  sanction  and  authority.  Coligni  joined  in  the  appeal;  but 


Chap.  XI. 


AN  AVENGING  EXPEDITION. 


131 

the  king  and  court,  ruled  by  Catharine,  whose  theological  views  were  then  in 
a transition  state,  were  profoundly  indifferent.  No  remonstrances  or  com- 
plaint was  sent  to  the  Spanish  court.  No  doubt  information  of  the  expedi- 
tion of  Ribault  had  been  sent  from  the  French  court  to  Philip  and  caused 
the  issuing  of  his  bloody  commission  to  Menendez.  The  courtiers  of 
Charles  the  Ninth,  who  feared  and  hated  Coligni  because  he  was  a Huguenot 
and  a patriot,  rejoiced  at  the  failure  of  his  scheme,  and  he  was  utterly  unable 
to  do  more  for  his  colony. 

At  this  juncture  a fiery  avenger  appeared.  It  was  the  Chevalier  Dominic 
de  Gourges,  a gentleman  of  Gascony,  member  of  an  eminent  family  and  a 
devoted  Roman  Catholic.  In  the  military  service  of  his  country  he  had 
been  made  a prisoner  by  the  Spaniards,  who  compelled  him  to  do  slave’s 
work  in  Spanish  galleys.  His  hatred  of  the  Spanish  blood  thereby  engen- 
dered was  undying.  When  he  heard  of  the  treatment  of  his  countrymen  in 
Florida,  at  their  hands,  he  was  in  retirement.  Filled  with  indignation 
because  of  the  crime  and  the  criminal  indifference  of  his  king,  he  determined 
to  fit  out  an  expedition  at  his  own  expense,  to  punish  the  offenders.  That 
was  in  1567.  He  sold  his  property,  borrowed  money  of  his  friends,  and 
fitted  out  three  small  vessels,  manned  by  one  hundred  soldiers  (many  of 
them  gentlemen  volunteers),  and  eighty  mariners  prepared  with  cross-bows 
and  picks  to  act  as  soldiers.  His  vessels  were  so  flat-bottomed  that  they 
might  pass  over  the  sand-bars  of  rivers. 

De  Gourges  kept  his  destination  a secret,  and  sailed  from  Bordeaux  late 
in  August  for  the  coast  of  Benin,  in  Africa,  as  he  publicly  pretended.  After 
various  vicissitudes  and  delays,  his  little  squadron  left  the  extreme  western 
end  of  Cuba  for  Florida,  when,  for  the  first  time,  he  revealed  to  all  his  fol- 
lowers, his  destination  and  designs.  In  a speech  glowing  with  enthusiasm, 
he  so  warmed  their  hearts  for  the  work  that  was  before  them,  that  they  were 
impatient  to  reach  the  coast.  Their  eyes  were  gratified  with  a sight  of 
Florida  in  the  spring  of  1568,  when  the  squadron  entered  the  mouth  of  a 
small  river  north  of  the  St.  John’s.  The  Indians,  supposing  the  new  comers 
to  be  Spaniards,  showed  much  hostility.  De  Gourges’  trumpeter,  who  had 
been  with  Laudonniere,  and  understood  a little  of  the  Indian  tongue,  volun- 
teered to  go  ashore.  There  he  was  delighted,  not  only  by  the  discovery  that 
the  cacique  was  an  old  friend  of  Laudonniere,  but  that  he  was  accompanied 
by  a young  Frenchman  who  had  escaped  the  massacre  of  Fort  Carolina. 
The  cacique  received  the  trumpeter  kindly,  and  sent  an  invitation  to  De 
Gourges  to  come  on  shore  and  hold  a conference.  He  did  so,  and  his  young 
countryman  acted  as  interpreter.  The  cacique,  painted  and  bedecked,  was 
seated  on  a log  in  a beautiful  grove,  with  several  allied  chiefs  sitting  in  a 


132 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  I. 


semicircle  around  him.  He  placed  De  Gourges  on  another  log,  and  then 
opened  the  conference  with  bitter  complaints  against  the  Spaniards,  because 
of  their  cruelties.  They  had  driven  the  Indians  from  their  homes,  murdered 
their  children,  and  desolated  their  fields  because  they  had  treated  the 
Frenchmen  kindly.  The  Chevalier  was  pleased  with  this  discourse,  but  was 
cautious.  He  told  the  cacique  that  the  Spaniards  should  be  punished  for 
their  crimes.  “ Do  you  intend  to  make  war  upon  them  ? ” quickly  asked  the 
cacique.  “ I do,”  as  quickly  answered  De  Gourges.  “ We  will  join  you  ! ” 
said  the  cacique  with  vehemence  as  he  sprang  to  his  feet ; and  the  same 
words  came  from  the  lips  of  the  other  chiefs  with  equal  vehemence  as  they 
seized  their  arms  which  they  had  laid  upon  the  grass,  and  brandished  their 
javelins  in  great  excitement.  An  alliance  against  the  Spaniards  was  made 
on  the  spot  between  the  French  and  Indians,  and  steps  were  immediately 
taken  to  attack  the  common  enemy.  Other  alliances  were  made  between 
the  French  and  Indians,  many  generations  afterward,  which  were  instruments 
of  dire  distress  to  the  English  settlers  in  America,  as  we  shall  observe  as  our 
story  goes  on. 

The  allies  met  at  an  appointed  place  not  far  from  the  St.  Johns,  on  which 
the  Spaniards  had  built  two  forts  below  Fort  Carolina,  on  opposite  banks  of 
the  river.  Moving  cautiously,  they  crossed  a little  stream  behind  a wood, 
arm-pit  deep,  the  soldiers  carrying  their  powder  flasks  on  their  helmets,  an 
arquebuse  in  one  hand  and  a sword  in  the  other.  Gathering  in  battle  array 
near  the  little  fort,  the  allies  rushed  forward  with  shouts  and  yells,  and  took 
it  by  surprise.  The  entire  garrison,  sixty  in  number,  were  slain,  excepting  a 
few  who  were  reserved  for  another  fate. 

De  Gourges  now  hastened  across  the  river,  with  eighty  men  in  boats,  to 
attack  the  fort  on  the  opposite  side,  followed  by  the  Indians,  who  were  so 
eager  for  the  fray  that  they  could  not  wait  for  the  return  of  the  little  vessels. 
They  plunged  into  the  water,  each  holding  a bow,  javelin  and  quiver  of 
arrows  in  one  hand,  and  swimming  with  the  other.  Appalled  by  the  number 
of  pale  and  dusky  enemies  that  threatened  them,  the  garrison  of  sixty  men 
fled  in  the  direction  of  Fort  Carolina  (or  Matheo),  three  miles  above.  They 
were  overtaken  by  the  French  and  Indians  in  the  woods,  and  the  whole  com- 
pany were  slain,  excepting  a few  who  were  held  as  prisoners.  From  these 
prisoners  and  from  a spy  who  was  discovered  in  the  camp,  the  French  com- 
mander learned  that  Fort  Carolina  was  not  very  strong;  that  its  garrison 
consisted  of  two  hundred  and  sixty  men,  and  that  they  were  greatly  alarmed 
by  a report  that  the  allies  were  two  thousand  in  number.  Encouraged  by 
this  information,  De  Gourges,  after  two  days’  preparation,  marched  with  his 
whole  force  against  the  doomed  fortress.  After  some  severe  fighting,  the 


FRENCHMEN  PROCEEDING  TO  ATTACK  THE  SPANISH  FORT  ON  THE  ST.  JOHNS. 


Chap.  XL 


RETALIATION. 


133 


fort  was  captured.  The  flower  of  the  garrison  had  already  been  slain  in  a 
sortie  or  sallying  out  to  attack  the  assailants,  and  many  of  the  remainder 
had  fled  to  the  woods,  where  they  were  met  by  the  Indians  and  slaughtered. 
There  was  an  indiscriminate  massacre  as  before,  a few  only  being  reserved  as 
prisoners.  Now  these,  with  others  who  had  been  so  reserved,  were  placed  in 
a row  under  the  very  trees  whereon  the  Huguenots  had  been  hung,  not  as 
Frenchmen,  but  as  Lutherans.  De  Gourges  addressed  them,  and  then  sus- 
pended them  all  by  their  necks.  Over  them  he  placed  the  inscription, 
burned  into  wood  with  a hot  iron  : 

Not  as  Spaniards  and  Mariners,  but  as  Traitors,  Robbers,  and  Murderers. 

So  was  concluded  the  savage  and  unchristian  work  of  retaliating  upon 
the  innocent  the  crimes  of  the  guilty.  Could  the  blow  have  fallen  upon 
King  Philip  of  Spain,  or  Menendez  his  executioner,  or  Mendoza  his  apologist 
and  coadjutor,  and  not  upon  the  mere  machines  of  government — the  com- 
mon soldiers — retributive  justice  would  have  been  more  divinely  vindicated. 
But  we  must  judge  Philip,  and  Menendez,  Mendoza  and  De  Gourges, 
leniently,  in  the  light  of  the  spirit  of  the  age  in  which  they  lived.  No 
Spanish  monarch  now ; no  military  chief,  no  truly  Christian  minister  in  any 
Christian  country,  to-day,  would  do  such  horrid  work  for  such  a cause.  The 
seminal  idea  of  the  protest  at  Spires  has  worked  beneficent  wonders  in 
making  men  less  savage  and  more  divine,  since  it  was  projected  into  human 
society. 

Too  weak  to  brave  the  wrath  of  Menendez,  who  was  at  St.  Augustine, 
De  Gourges,  with  the  assistance  of  the  Indians,  utterly  destroyed  the  forts 
on  the  St.  John’s,  and  then  sailed  for  France,  where  he  arrived  just  in  time 
to  avoid  vessels  which  Philip  had  sent  out  to  intercept  him.  He  was 
received  with  coldness  at  court.  Philip  had  demanded  of  the  weak  Charles 
the  head  of  De  Gourges,  and  the  Queen-mother,  Catharine,  had  espoused  the 
cause  of  the  opponents  of  the  Huguenots.  In  poverty  De  Gourges  con- 
cealed himself  for  some  years,  declining  an  invitation  of  the  Queen  of  Eng- 
land (Elizabeth)  to  enter  her  service.  At  length  he  died,  whilst  on  his  way 
to  a seaport  to  take  command  of  a fleet  that  was  about  to  wage  war  on 
Philip. 

Menendez  firmly  planted  a colony  at  St.  Augustine,  and  sent  an  expe- 
dition, with  Jesuit  missionaries,  to  explore  the  waters  of  Chesapeake  Bay, 
plant  a settlement  there,  and  scatter  the  seeds  of  Christianity  among  the 
pagans.  But  his  death  in  1574,  when  he  was  High  Admiral  of  the  Spanish 
navy,  arrested  this  enterprise,  and  no  further  attempts  seem  to  have  been 


134 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  I. 


made  by  the  Spaniards  to  plant  settlements  within  the  domain  of  our 
Republic. 

Coligni  was  deserted  by  his  sovereign  and  his  inhuman  mother,  and  be- 
came a martyr.  Catharine,  with  a strange  perversion  of  a mother’s  natural 
instincts,  after  she  became  regent,  plunged  all  of  her  children,  in  the  flower 
of  their  youth,  into  a whirl  of  sensual  pleasure,  that  soon  weakened  their 
minds  and  bodies  beyond  recovery,  as  she  intended  they  should  be.  Her 
royal  son,  when  he  reached  his  majority,  seemed  incapable  of  resisting  any 
temptation  put  in  his  way  by  his  mother,  and  he  was  easily  persuaded  by 
her  to  order  the  destruction  of  the  Protestants  throughout  France,  on  the 
eve  of  St.  Bartholomew,  in  August,  1572.  She  had  failed  in  a plot  to  bring 
the  Duke  of  Guise  to  the  scaffold,  and  now  she  had  joined  the  league  against 
the  Huguenots,  of  which  he  was  a leader.  Coligni  was  selected  as  one  of 
the  first  victims  for  sacrifice  on  that  fatal  night.  Behme,  a German  assassin 
in  the  employ  of  the  Duke  of  Guise,  led  a band  of  murderers  to  the  room 
of  Coligni,  with  concealed  weapons  excepting  a boar-spear  which  he  held  in 
his  hand.  When  he  entered,  the  majestic  presence  of  the  Admiral  and  the 
serenity  and  dignity  of  his  deportment  so  abashed  the  leader,  that  he  was 
about  to  retire,  when  one  of  his  followers  whispered  in  his  ear,  “ Coward !” 
Behme  instantly  recovered  his  self-possession  and  plunged  the  spear  into  the 
heart  of  Coligni,  who  fell  dead  at  the  feet  of  his  murderers.  His  body  was 
thrown  out  of  the  window  into  a court,  where  the  Duke  of  Guise  was  wait- 
ing for  the  consummation  of  the  crime.  The  Admiral’s  head  was  severed 
from  his  body  and  carried  to  Catharine,  who  had  it  embalmed  and  sent  as  a 
present  to  Pope  Gregory  the  Thirteenth,  at  Rome.  The  Admiral’s  body 
was  dragged  through  the  streets  of  Paris  amidst  the  execration  of  an  infu- 
riated mob,  and  then  was  hanged  on  a gibbet  where  Charles  the  Ninth  and 
his  courtiers  viewed  it. 

We  have  observed  that  a remnant  of  Ribault’s  company  who  abandoned 
Port  Royal  were  picked  up  at  sea  by  an  English  vessel,  and  taken  to  the 
presence  of  Queen  Elizabeth.  She  was  the  daughter  of  Henry  the  Eighth 
and  the  beautiful  Anne  Boleyn,  and  had  succeeded  her  half-sister  Mary  as 
sovereign  of  Great  Britain  in  1558,  when  she  was  twenty-five  years  of  age. 
She  had  not  been  long  on  the  throne  when  these  Huguenots  were  brought 
into  her  audience-chamber.  They  were  treated  kindly,  for  Elizabeth  was  in 
theological  sympathy  with  them.  She  had  always  been  a Protestant  at 
heart,  but  to  avoid  many  personal  perils  and  even  death  during  the  reign  of 
her  half-sister,  who  was  wife  of  Philip  of  Spain,  she  had  so  deported  herself 
with  singularly  adroit  hypocrisy,  that  she  was  only  suspected  of  heresy.  So 
completely  did  she  deceive  everybody,  that  only  the  day  before  she  ascended 


Chap.  XI. 


CHARACTER  OF  QUEEN  ELIZABETH 


135 


the  throne  as  queen,  the  Spanish  ambassador  at  the  British  court  wrote  to 
his  royal  master : “ She  is  a true  Catholic  ; she  declares  that  she  prays  to  the 
Virgin  and  acknowledges  the  real  presence  [of  the  real  body  and  blood  of 
Christ]  in  the  sacrament.”  That  was  at  the  middle  of  November.  On 
Christmas  she  placed  herself  at  the  head  of  the  Protestant  world,  by  refusing 
to  hear  mass  in  the  Royal  Chapel ; and  yet,  only  three  weeks  later,  when 


THE  ASSASSINATION  OF  COLIGNI. 


she  was  crowned  in  Westminster  Abbey,  the  religious  ceremonials  were  all 
in  accordance  with  the  liturgy  of  the  Church  of  Rome,  and  she  partook  of 
the  sacrament  at  the  hands  of  a Romish  Archbishop.  She  was  simply  an 
adroit  politician,  and  was  moved  altogether  by  political  motives.  For  years 
she  endeavored  to  gain  the  favor  of  all  her  subjects,  Romanists  and  Protest- 


136 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  I. 


ants,  by  favoring  both  ; and  tlierc  was  a ludicrous  mixture  of  the  two  cere- 
monials in  the  public  worship  of  the  realm. 

At  the  time  the  distressed  Huguenots  were  brought  into  the  presence  of 
Elizabeth,  she  was  on  the  point  of  affording  aid  to  their  co-religionists  in 
France  and  the  Netherlands.  She  favored  Coligni’s  scheme  for  colonization 
in  America,  and  she  listened  w'ith  delight  to  the  accounts  given  by  these 
castaw'ays  of  the  beauty  of  the  country,  the  amenities  of  the  climate,  and 
the  fertility  of  the  soil  of  the  mysterious  land  peopled  by  a mysterious 
people,  which  they  had  been  compelled  to  abandon.  The  enlightened  and 
sagacious  queen  readily  perceived  the  glory  and  advantages  she  might  win 
for  her  country,  by  carrying  forward  Coligni’s  plan,  w'ith  her  own  country- 
men and  the  French  Huguenots  as  the  materials  for  a powerful  colony.  She 
felt  a strong  desire  to  do  so,  but  she  was  then  too  deeply  engaged  in  more 
important  state  work,  and  her  desires  did  not  ripen  into  action  until  several 
years  afterward,  although  they  grew  in  intensity.  From  her  subjects  who 
went  over  to  France  in  considerable  numbers  to  fight  under  the  Prince  of 
Cond6  and  Coligni,  she  continually  heard  more  and  more  of  the  grandeur 
and  richness  of  the  warmer  regions  of  North  America.  From  none  of  them 
came  more  vivid  pictures  than  from  Walter  Raleigh,  a young  Devonshire 
gentleman  w'ho  came  from  an  ancient  family,  was  well  educated,  and  w'ho 
was  one  of  a small  body  of  troops  sent  by  his  queen  to  assist  the  Huguenots 
in  France.  He  served  five  years  under  Coligni,  and  then  proceeded  to  the 
Netherlands  to  fight  the  Spaniards,  under  the  banner  of  the  Prince  of 
Orange.  He  was  in  that  service  abroad  when  De  Gourges  returned  from 
his  foray  in  Florida,  and  Raleigh  heard  much  of  that  region  from  the  lips  of 
the  Chevalier.  To  his  friends  at  home  and  to  his  court,  he  wrote  letters 
filled  with  accounts  of  the  wonders  of  the  West,  and  when  he  returned  to 
England  he  found  the  minds  of  many  of  the  leading  men  of  the  realm,  as 
well  as  that  of  his  queen,  filled  with  projects  for  making  settlements  in  the 
warmer  regions  of  North  America. 

Meanwhile,  English  navigators  had  been  again  trying  to  solve  the  ques- 
tion which  Cabot  had  failed  to  do  more  than  half  a century  before,  namely, 
the  existence  of  a northwest  passage  to  Asia  from  the  British  Isles.  Among 
them  was  Martin  Frobisher,  a Yorkshireman,  whose  zeal  and  patience  were 
remarkable.  He  spent  fifteen  years  in  fruitless  endeavors  to  get  up  an  expe- 
dition to  accomplish  that  object,  when  he  was  fortunate  enough  to  secure 
the  patronage  of  Ambrose  Dudley,  Earl  of  Warwick.  The  queen  and  her 
government  took  a lively  interest  in  the  undertaking,  and  early  in  June, 
1576,  Frobisher  sailed  from  Deptford,  on  the  Thames,  with  two  barks  of 
'Only  twenty-five  tons  each  and  a pinnace  of  ten  tons,  with  the  avowed  pur- 


Chap.  XL 


FROBISHER’S  VOYAGES. 


137 


pose  of  making  the  discovery  or  to  die  in  the  attempt.  When  the  little 
flotilla  passed  by  the  palace  at  Greenwich,  the  queen,  who  was  watching  its 
movements  from  an  open  window,  leaned  out  and  waved  her  hand  toward 
the  commander  in  token  of  her  good-will  and  a farewell. 

Frobisher  touched  at  Greenland,  coasted  up  the  shores  of  Labrador  and 
entered  a strait  or  inlet  above  the  entrance  to  Hudson’s  Bay,  which  bears  his 
name.  There  he  landed  and  formally  took  possession  of  the  country  in  the 
name  of  Elizabeth.  Impenetrable  pack-ice,  the  loss  of  some  of  his  men 
and  the  growing  discontent  of  others, 
caused  him  to  return  to  England  in  the 
autumn,  at  the  twilight  of  the  polar  night, 
taking  with  him  some  of  the  products  of 
the  new  region  which  he  had  added  to  the 
British  Empire.  Among  other  things  was 
a heavy  dark  stone,  a fragment  of  which 
the  wife  of  a man  to  whom  Frobisher  had 
given  it  threw  into  the  fire,  in  a passion. 

Her  husband  snatched  it  out  and  quenched 
the  glowing  mineral  in  vinegar,  when  it 
glittered  like  burnished  gold.  On  fusing 
it,  a small  quantity  of  the  precious  metal 
was  found  in  it.  The  fact  was  soon  noised 
abroad  and  produced  a gold-fever.  Many 
persons  eagerly  offered  money  to  enable 
Frobisher  to  make  another  voyage  to  those 
high  latitudes,  and  in  May,  1577,  he  sailed 
from  Harwich  in  a vessel  of  the  royal 
navy,  which  the  queen  placed  at  his  dis- 
posal, accompanied  by  two  barks  of  thirty 
tons  each. 

Only  for  gold  were  these  adventurers 
ordered  to  search.  They  were  not  to  seek 
the  mysterious  passage  to  India.  Indeed  Frobisher  had  demonstrated  the 
impossibility  of  passing  the  polar  ice-fields.  On  the  shores  of  Frobisher’s 
Inlet,  the  whole  company  landed,  freighted  the  ships  with  the  black  stone, 
and  returned  to  England.  A commission  was  appointed  by  the  queen 
to  determine  the  value  of  the  discoveries  made.  Very  little  gold,  if  any, 
was  procured  from  the  cargoes  of  stone,  but  the  commission,  for  reasons 
not  made  clear,  deemed  it  expedient  to  send  out  another  expedition. 
Frobisher  was  now  placed  in  command  of  a fleet,  for  he  had  twelve 


SIR  WALTER  RALEIGH. 


138 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  I. 


ships  in  addition  to  the  three  with  which  he  made  his  second  voyage. 
With  these  he  sailed  from  Harwich  on  the  last  day  of  May,  1558,  instructed 
to  make  search  for  genuine  gold-ore,  or  for  a northwest  passage.  Storms 
and  currents  scattered  the  fleet,  and  not  more  than  half  of  the  ships  reached 
their  destination.  Some  turned  back,  and  two  of  them  went  to  the  bottom 
of  the  North  Atlantic  Ocean.  No  effort  was  made  to  force  the  vessels  that 
reached  Frobisher’s  Inlet  to  penetrate  the  ice-pack  northward.  They  were 
laden  with  the  dark  stones  (out  of  which  not  a particle  of  gold  was  obtained), 
and  returned  to  England. 

The  three  expeditions  under  Frobisher  were  unsuccessful,  excepting  in 
the  discovery  of  several  bays,  inlets  and  islands  on  the  northern  coasts  of 
America,  before  unknown.  The  brave  leader,  however,  won  the  honors  of  a 
discoverer  and  the  fame  of  having  been  the  first  European  who  had  pene- 
trated so  far  toward  the  Arctic  Circle,  for  Frobisher’s  Inlet  is  under  the 
sixty-third  degree  of  north  latitude.  For  these  exploits  and  other  brave 
deeds,  especially  as  one  of  the  chief  captains  in  the  British  fleet  that  con- 
fronted the  “ Invincible  Armada  ” of  Spain,  he  received  the  honors  of 
knighthood. 

Whilst  these  expeditions  were  in  progress,  Francis  Drake,  another  Devon- 
shire man,  was  circumnavigating  the  globe ; a feat  performed  by  the  Portu- 
guese navigator,  Magellan,  half  a century  before.  Drake  had  suffered  much 
in  person  and  property  from  the  Spaniards,  and  had  vowed  vengeance  and 
retribution.  His  friends  fitted  out  five  vessels  for  him  to  go  on  a voyage  of 
discovery  and  plunder.  Promising  the  queen  gold  and  conquest,  he  sailed 
under  her  sanction*  at  the  middle  of  November,  I577>  from  the  harbor  of 
Plymouth,  making  the  Pelican,  of  a hundred  tons  burthen — the  largest  vessel 
in  his  squadron — his  flag-ship.  After  touching  at  Brazil,  and  other  places 
down  the  east  coast  of  South  America,  he  passed  through  the  Straits  of 
Magellan  at  the  southern  extremity  of  the  continent,  early  in  September, 
1578.  Then  he  ran  up  the  western  coast,  plundering  the  Spanish  settle- 
ments in  Chili  and  Peru,  capturing  a royal  Spanish  galleon  heavily  loaded 
with  treasure,  and  taking  possession  of  California  in  the  name  of  his  sov- 
ereign. Burdened  with  gold  and  silver,  and  with  his  revenge  fully  satisfied, 
Drake  determined  to  return  home.  Fearing  to  meet  a superior  Spanish 
force  in  the  ocean,  he  resolved  to  seek  a passage  around  the  northern  shores 
of  America.  Repelled  by  severe  cold,  he  sailed  across  the  Pacific  and 
Indian  Oceans,  doubled  the  Cape  of  Good  Hope,  and  arrived  at  Plymouth 
late  in  September,  1579,  having  discovered  points  on  the  western  coasts  of 
our  country  as  far  north  as  Washington  Territory,  above  the  Columbia 
River.  The  queen  partook  of  a banquet  given  by  Drake  on  board  the 


Chap.  XI. 


THE  KNIGHTING  OF  DRAKE. 


139 


Pelican  in  Plymouth  harbor,  that  was  spread  under  a rich  canopy  of  silk  and 
tapestry  that  covered  the  clean  deck,  on  which  lay  beautiful  Turkish  mats. 
The  queen  was  attended  by  several  ladies  and  gentlemen  of  her  court.  The 
food  was  served  on  silver  dishes,  and  the  wine  in  golden  goblets.  All  the 
fruit  of  plunder.  When  the  banquet  was  ended,  the  queen  conferred  upon 
Drake  the  honor  of  knighthood.  He  was  then  between  thirty  and  forty 
years  of  age.  Richly  dressed  in  the  uniform  of  his  rank,  he  knelt  before  his 
sovereign,  at  her  command,  in  the  presence  of  the  goodly  company,  and 


DRAKE  KNIGHTED  BY  THE  QUEEN. 


with  his  own  sword  she  smote  him  gently  over  the  shoulders,  three  times, 
and  then  bade  him  stand,  a knight  of  her  realm. 

After  that  the  exploits  of  Drake  on  the  sea  were  marvellous.  They 
were  against  the  Spaniards,  whom  he  hated  intensely.  Within  the  space  of 
a single  year  he  captured  and  plundered  Carthagena  in  South  America,  and 
several  other  towns  in  that  region  ; burned  Forts  Antonio  and  St.  Augustine, 
ravaged  places  in  the  West  Indies,  and  running  up  the  coasts  of  Florida, 


140 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  1. 


Georgia,  and  the  Carolinas,  he  visited  Roanoke  Island,  and  bore  away  from 
it,  to  England,  a famishing  colony  which  Raleigh  had  planted  there.  On 
another  occasion  he  “ singed  the  beard  of  the  King  of  Spain,”  as  he  said, 
by  burning  one  hundred  Spanish  vessels  in  the  harbor  of  Cadiz.  He  was  a 
terror  to  the  Spaniards  everywhere;  and  long  after  his  death,  in  1595, 
Spanish  nurses  used  the  name  of  Drake  as  a bugaboo  to  frighten  children, 
representing  him  as  a devouring  dragon.  Although  he  is  honored  for  his 
enterprise  and  the  glory  he  won  for  England,  and  is  regarded  as  the  founder 
of  the  Royal  Navy,  Sir  Francis  Drake  was  only  a daring  pirate  on  a large 
and  legalized  scale.  Camden  says;  “Nothing  troubled  him  more  than  that 
some  of  the  chief  men  at  court  refused  to  accept  the  gold  which  he  offered 
them  as  gotten  by  piracy.” 

In  1594,  the  Spanish  king  threatened  England,  with  a great  show  of 
power.  Drake  entered  the  service  of  his  sovereign,  and  with  Admiral  Haw- 
kins he  sailed  for  America  in  1595,  with  twenty-six  vessels.  A divided  com- 
mand worked  mischievously.  Hawkins  died  at  Porto  Rico,  partly  from  the 
effects  of  a wound,  and  partly  from  chagrin  because  of  reverses.  Drake  soon 
afterwards  achieved  great  triumphs.  He  destroyed  several  Spanish  towns; 
but  a fatal  fever  seized  him  late  in  the  year.  It  was  aggravated  by  mental 
agitation  caused  by  a defeat  of  his  forces,  and  he  died  in  December.  The 
gallant  sailor  was  honored  with  a sailor’s  funeral.  He  was  buried  at  sea  in 
sight  of  Puerto  Bello. 


CHAPTER  XII. 


SIR  HUMPHREY  GILBERT’S  PATENT — CHARACTER  OF  WALTER  RALEIGH — ILLUSTRATION  OF  HIS 
GALLANTRY — A FAVORITE  OF  QUEEN  ELIZABETH — GILBERT  AT  NEWFOUNDLAND — IS  LOST  AT 
SEA — RALEIGH  RECEIVES  A CHARTER  FROM  THE  QUEEN  — SENDS  AN  EXPLORING  EXPEDITION 
TO  AMERICA — ITS  CHEERING  RESULTS — THE  QUEEN  NAMES  THE  REGION  EXPLORED  VIRGINIA 
— RALEIGH  SENDS  A COLONY  TO  VIRGINIA — BAD  LEADERS  PRODUCE  GREAT  DISASTERS — A 
COLONY  OF  WORKING  PEOPLE  SENT — FIRST  ENGLISH  CHILD  BORN  IN  AMERICA — THE  COLONY 
LOST — RALEIGH’S  DEEDS,  AND  HIS  SUFFERINGS  AT  THE  HANDS  OF  A BAD  KING  — HIS  DEATH 
ON  THE  SCAFFOLD. 

WHILST  Drake  was  plundering  Spanish  settlements  in  South 
America  and  circumnavigating  the  globe  to  avoid  his  enemies, 
the  minds  of  the  British  queen  and  many  of  her  leading  subjects 
were  powerfully  directed  to  the  more  beneficent  object  of  founding  colonies 
in  the  region  of  North  America  discovered  by  Cabot  three-fourths  of  a 
century  before.  With  these  better  desires  were  mingled  a thirst  for  gold 
which  they  believed  existed  in  abundance  somewhere  in  those  regions. 
There  were  yearnings,  also,  for  planting  settlements  and  searching  for 
treasures  on  the  borders  of  the  beautiful  lands  whose  marvellous  imagery 
had  been  portrayed  by  the  shipwrecked  Huguenots  and  the  letters  of  Raleigh 
from  France.  These  desires  had  assumed  a more  tangible  shape  than  the 
day-dreams  which  had  floated  in  the  minds  of  England’s  monarch  and 
people.  They  had  been  stimulated  into  action  by  Raleigh,  on  his  return 
from  the  continent;  and  his  half-brother.  Sir  Humphrey  Gilbert — a kindred 
spirit — through  the  intervention  of  the  young  pupil  of  Coligni,  obtained  a 
patent  from  Elizabeth,  which  authorized  him  to  explore  and  appropriate 
remote  and  barbarous  lands  unoccupied  by  Christian  powers,  and  to  hold 
them  as  fiefs  or  estates  of  the  crown  of  England.  That  was  in  the  year 
1578.  Gilbert  did  not  believe  there  could  be  profit  in  searching  for  gold  in 
the  higher  latitudes.  A more  comprehensive  view  of  the  fisheries  off  New- 
foundland, to  which  four  hundred  vessels  from  Europe  repaired  annually, 
turned  his  thoughts  now  to  a project  of  planting  a colony  on  that  island  ; 
and  in  this  schenie  Raleigh  acquiesced. 

Walter  Raleigh  was  one  of  the  most  illustrious  of  the  English  adven- 
turers of  his  time.  When,  through  his  influence  at  court,  Gilbert  obtained 


142 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  1. 


his  patent,  he  was  only  twenty-six  years  of  age.  Endowed  with  brilliant 
genius,  unbounded  ambition  and  extraordinary  activity,  his  mind  grasped 
the  boldest  projects,  and  his  versatility,  enthusiasm  and  credulity,  led  him 
to  the  immediate  execution  of  any  scheme  which  he  might  conceive. 
“ Framed  in  the  prodigality  of  nature,”  says  an  English  author,  “he  was  at 
once  the  mo.st  industrious  scholar  and  the  most  accomplished  courtier  of  his 
age  ; as  a projector,  profound,  ingenious,  and  indefatigable ; as  a soldier, 
prompt,  daring,  and  heroic ; ‘ so  contemplative  (says  an  old  writer),  that  he 
might  have  been  judged  unfit  for  action  ; so  active,  that  he  seemed  to  have 
no  leisure  for  contemplation.’  The  chief  defect  of  his  mental  temperament 
was  the  absence  of  moderation  and  regulation  of  thought  and  aim.  Smitten 
with  a love  of  glorious  achievement,  he  had  unfortunately  embraced  the 


DRAKE.  ELIZABETH.  RALEIGH. 


maxim  that  ‘whatever  is  not  extraordinary  is  nothing;’  and  his  mind  (till 
the  last  scene  of  his  life)  was  not  sufficiently  pervaded  by  religion  to  recog- 
nize that  nobility  of  purpose  which  ennobles  the  commonest  actions,  and 
elevates  circumstances  instead  of  borrowing  dignity  from  them.  Uncon- 
trolled by  steady  principle  and  sober  calculation,  the  fancy  and  the  passions 
of  Raleigh  transported  him,  in  some  instances,  beyond  the  bounds  of  recti- 
tude, honor  and  propriety ; and,  seconded  by  the  malevolence  of  his  fortune, 
entailed  reproaches  on  his  character  and  discomfiture  on  his  undertakings. 
But  though  adversity  might  cloud  his  path,  it  would  never  depress  his  spirit, 
or  quench  a single  ray  of  his  genius.  He  subscribed  to  his  fortune  with  a 


LHAP.  XII. 


GILBERT’S  VOYAGES. 


143 


noble  grace,  and  by  the  universal  consent  of  mankind  his  errors  and  infirmi- 
ties have  been  deemed  within  the  protection  of  his  glory.” 

Raleigh  became  a favorite  of  his  queen  by  a single  act  of  gallantry. 
He  had  lately  returned  from  Ireland,  where  he  had  distinguished  himself  in 
putting  down  the  rebellion  of  the  Desmonds.  Meeting  the  queen  one  day 
whilst  she  was  walking  with  two  of  her  maids  of  honor,  he  took  from  his 
shoulders  his  rich  velvet  mantle,  and  bowing  gracefully,  spread  it  over  a wet 
spot  in  her  path  for  her  to  walk  upon.  Because  of  this  delicate  galLintry, 
Raleigh  was  immediately  admitted  to  court,  where  he  and  the  accomplished 
Essex  became  powerful  rivals  for  the  queen’s  special  favor.  Their  intrigues 
were  ceaseless  and  often  romantic,  and  filled  a large  space  in  the  gossip  of 
court  circles.  Raleigh  soon  tired  of  such  a fruitless  life,  and  leaving  the 
business  of  a courtier,  engaged  again  in  the  graver  thoughts  and  duties  per- 
taining to  American  colonization. 

Gilbert’s  patent,  which  bound  him  to  pay  to  the  crown  one-fifth  part  of 
all  gold  and  silver  which  the  countries  he  might  discover  and  colonize  should 
produce,  invested  him  with  the  powers  of  a civil  and  criminal  legislator  over 
the  inhabitants  of  any  territory  which  he  might  occupy,  provided  the  laws 
should  be  in  accordance  with  the  statutes  and  policy  of  England,  and  not  in 
derogation  of  supreme  allegiance  to  the  crown.  It  also  guaranteed  to  his 
followers  the  civil  rights  of  Englishmen.  The  patent,  so  far  as  it  related  to 
the  appropriation  of  territory,  extended  six  years,  during  which  time  no 
other  persons  should  be  permitted  to  establish  a settlement  within  two  hun- 
dred leagues  of  any  spot  which  these  adventurers  might  occupy. 

Armed  with  these  arbitrary  powers  and  aided  by  Raleigh’s  friendship  and 
money,  Gilbert,  at  the  expense  of  much  of  his  own  fortune,  fitted  out  a 
small  .squadron  and  sailed  for  America  late  in  1579.  He  had  been  di.stin- 
guished  for  gallant  military  service  in  Ireland,  and  in  1570  had  received  the 
honor  of  knighthood.  Six  years  afterwards,  he  had  published  a book 
entitled  “A  Discourse  of  a Discovery  for  a New  Passage  to  Cathay,”  which 
attracted  a good  deal  of  attention  toward  him.  His  reputation  was  so  high 
that  the  sons  of  many  of  the  nobility  and  gentry  of  England  embarked 
with  him  as  adventurers.  They  were  utterly  unfit  to  be  the  founders  of  a 
state  (and  were  not  permitted  to  become  so),  for  most  of  them  were  idlers 
and  some  were  dissolute. 

It  is  said  by  some  that  Raleigh  sailed  with  his  half-brother.  Heavy 
storms  or  Spanish  war  vessels  destroyed  one  of  the  ships,  and  compelled  the 
remainder  to  turn  back,  and  for  the  space  of  four  years  afterwards  the 
enterprise  was  held  in  abeyance.  Gilbert  was  too  much  impoverished  to 
undertake  another  expedition  ; but  Raleigh  and  his  friends,  at  the  end  of 


144 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  I. 


that  time,  fitted  out  another  small  squadron.  It  sailed  from  Plymouth  in 
June,  1583,  under  the  command  of  Gilbert,  who  bore  as  a present  from  the 
queen  and  as  a token  of  her  good-will,  a golden  anchor  guided  by  a woman  ; 
and  he  was  accompanied  by  a learned  Hungarian.  Thedittle  flotilla  reached 
Newfoundland  in  August,  and  entered  the  harbor  of  St.  John’s,  wherein  the 
Lord  of  Robertval  and  Cartier  had  met  almost  fifty  years  before.  There, 
on  the  firm  earth,  Gilbert  set  up  a column  with  the  arms  of  England  carved 


on  it ; and  in  the  pres- 
ence of  hundreds  of 
fishermen  from  West- 
ern Europe,  whom  he 
summoned  to  the  spot, 
he  formally  took  pos- 
session of  the  country 
in  the  name  of  Queen 
Elizabeth. 

Gilbert’s  vessels  had 
suffered  much  from 
storms  on  the  voyage ; 
but  the  intrepid  mari- 
ners, after  making 
slight  repairs,  pro- 
ceeded to  explore  the 
coasts  southward.  Off 
the  shores  of  Cape 
Breton,  heavy  tem- 
pests beat  upon  his 
ships,  and  not  long 
afterwards  his  larger 
one,  in  which  he  sailed, 

RALEIGH  SPREADING  HIS  MANTLE  FOR  THE  FEET  OF  THE  QUEEN.  111  1 

was  dashed  upon  the 
rocks  and  lost  with 

about  one  hundred  men.  The  commander  was  saved  and  took  refuge  in  the 
Squirrel,  a little  vessel  of  ten  tons.  Buffeting  the  waves  until  his  flotilla  was 
dispersed  and  hope  failed,  he  turned  the  prow  of  his  little  vessel  homeward, 
with  another  named  the  Hind.  On  a September  day  when  a gale  was  rising, 
the  two  vessels  were  within  speaking  distance  of  each  other.  Gilbert  was 
sitting  abaft  with  a book  in  his  hand,  and  in  reply  to  a shout  from  the  com- 
mander of  the  Hind  that  they  were  in  great  peril,  he  cried : “ We  are  as 
near  Heaven  on  the  sea  as  on  the  land.”  The  gale  increased  ; night  fell ; the 


Chap.  XII. 


ENGLISH  ON  ROANOKE  ISLAND. 


145 


darkness  became  intense,  and  at  midnight  the  lights  of  the  Squirrel  went  out 
suddenly.  The  little  bark  had  plunged  beneath  the  waves  and  all  on  board 
perished.  The  Hind  was  the  only  vessel  of  the  squadron  that  escaped  the 
tempests  and  returned  to  England  with  tidings  of  the  disaster. 

Misfortune  seemed  to  stimulate  Raleigh  to  more  energetic  action.  He 
was  then  paying  court  to  the  queen,  with  whom  he  was  a great  favorite. 
He  asked  her  for  a charter  in  all  respects  the  same  as  that  she  had  given  to 
Gilbert,  but  covering  lands  further  south.  It  was  given  in  April,  1584.  It 
constituted  Raleigh  Lord  Proprietor  of  all  countries  between  Delaware  Bay 
and  the  mouth  of  the  Santee  River  in  South  Carolina.  Quick  in  the  execu- 
tion of  his  projects,  two  ships  were  made  ready  for  sea  before  June,  well 
equipped  with  men  and  provisions.  Arthur  Barlow,  a skillful  mariner,  was 
placed  in  chief  command,  assisted  by  Philip  Amidas,  of  French  descent  but 
a native  of  England.  They  were  directed  to  explore  the  coasts  within  the 
parallels  named,  and  choose  a place  for  settlement.  Instead  of  following  the 
northerly  path  across  the  Atlantic,  in  which  so  many  disasters  had  occurred, 
they  went  by  the  way  of  the  Canary  Isles,  were  wafted  by  the  trade-winds 
to  the  West  Indies,  and  approached  the  American  coast  in  the  latitude  of 
Florida.  Turning  northward,  they  ran  up  the  coast  along  the  line  of  the 
Gulf  Stream,  and  entering  Ocracock  Inlet,  anchored  off  Wocoken  Island,  in 
July.  There  they  landed,  and  were  kindly  received  by  the  gentle  natives  who 
were  as  kindly  treated  in  return.  There  Barlow  set  up  a small  column  with 
the  British  arms  rudely  carved  upon  it,  and  waving  over  it  the  banner  of 
England,  in  the  presence  of  the  wondering  natives,  took  possession  of  the 
whole  region — islands  and  main,  inlets  and  sounds — in  the  name  of  the 
queen.  They  spent  several  weeks  in  explorations  of  Roanoke  Island  and 
Pamlico  and  Albemarle  Sounds,  and  in  trafficking  with  the  natives.  “ The 
people,”  wrote  the  mariners,  “ were  most  gentle,  loving  and  faithful,  void  of 
all  guile  and  treason,  and  such  as  lived  after  the  manner  of  the  golden  age.” 

On  Roanoke  Island  the  Englishmen  were  entertained,  with  a refined 
hospitality,  by  the  mother  of  King  Wingina  (who  was  absent) ; and  wherever 
they  went,  friendship  was  the  rule.  To  the  feelings  of  the  strangers,  every- 
thing on  the  islands  and  on  the  main  was  charming.  Nature  was  then  gar- 
nished in  all  her  summer  wealth,  and  to  the  eyes  of  the  Englishmen  her 
beauties  there  were  marvellous.  Magnificent  trees  were  draped  with  luxu- 
riant vines  clustered  with  growing  grapes,  and  the  forest  swarmed  with  birds 
of  sweetest  songs  and  beautiful  plumage.  After  gathering  what  information 
they  could  about  the  neighboring  country,  Barlow  and  Amidas  departed  for 
England,  with  their  company,  attended  by  Manteo  and  Wanchese,  two 
dusky  lords  of  the  woods  and  waters. 


146 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book.  1. 


The  glowing  accounts  of  this  newly-discovered  region  given  by  the  mari- 
ners, and  the  pictures  of  the  simple  lives  and  gentle  manners  of  the  inhabi- 
tants which  they  drew,  delighted  Raleigh  and  his  sovereign  ; and  Elizabeth, 
as  a memorial  that  the  splendid  domain  had  been  added  to  the  British  realm 
during  the  reign  of  a virgin  queen,  named  the  country  VIRGINIA.  So  say 
some.  Others  say  that  the  name  was  given  because  the  land  retained  the 
virgin  beauty,  purity  and  fertility  of  its  first  creation.  The  queen  declared 
that  such  acquisition  was  one  of  the  most  glorious  events  of  her  reign ; and 
she  bestowed  the  honors  of  knighthood  upon  Raleigh.  The  parliament  or 
congress  confirmed  his  charter,  and  the  queen,  in  order  to  enrich  him,  gave 
him  the  monopoly  of  the  sale  of  sweet  wines.  His  popularity  was  un^ 
bounded,  and  by  an  almost  unanimous  vote  he  was  elected  to  represent  the 
county  of  Devon  in  parliament. 

Satisfied  that  his  charter  was  a key  that  would  unlock  the  coveted  treas- 
ures of  wealth,  honor  and  power,  Raleigh  now  took  measures  for  sending 
out  a colony  to  people  his  American  domain.  P'riends  in  abundance  stood 
ready  to  assist  him,  and  on  the  9th  of  April,  1585,  he  saw  a fleet  of  seven 
ships  sail  out  of  Plymouth  harbor,  with  one  hundred  and  eighty  colonists 
and  a full  complement  of  seamen,  for  the  coast  of  Virginia.  Sir  Richard 
Grenville,  one  of  the  most  gallant  men  of  his  times,  w'as  in  command  of  the 
squadron,  and  Ralph  Lane,  a soldier  and  civilian  of  distinction,  who  had 
been  an  equerry  in  the  royal  court,  was  sent  as  the  governor  of  the  colony, 
with  Amidas  as  his  assistant.  They  were  accompanied  by  Thomas  Caven- 
dish, who,  the  next  year,  followed  the  path  of  Drake  around  the  world ; by 
a competent  painter  to  delineate  men  and  things  in  America,  and  by  Thomas 
Harriot,  an  eminent  mathematician  and  astronomer,  who  went  as  historian 
and  naturalist  of  the  expedition. 

The  choice  of  Grenville  as  commander  of  the  squadron  was  unfortunate. 
He  was  more  intent  upon  plunder  than  colonization.  Sailing  over  the 
southern  route,  he  cruised  among  the  West  India  Islands,  capturing  Spanish 
vessels,  and  so  infusing  the  colonists  with  a spirit  quite  the  reverse  of  that 
of  peaceful  settlers.  They  did  not  reach  the  American  coast  until  late  in 
June,  when  the  vessels  came  near  being  wrecked  upon  a point  of  land  which, 
from  that  circumstance,  they  named  Cape  Fear.  Sailing  up  the  coast  they 
entered  Ocracock  Inlet  and  finally  landed  on  Roanoke  Island,  with  Manteo, 
who  returned  with  them. 

We  learn  all  that  we  know  about  this  colony  in  Virginia,  from  Harriot’s 
narrative.  He  remained  there  a year,  making  observations  and  obtaining 
drawings  of  everything  of  interest.  He  had  been  Raleigh’s  tutor  in  mathe- 
matics, and  took  great  interest  in  the  expedition  ; and  he  labored  hard  to 


Chap.  XII. 


CRUELTY  TOWARD  THE  INDIANS. 


147 


restrain  the  cupidity  of  the  colonists,  who  were  more  intent  upon  winning 
gold  and  plunder,  than  in  tilling  the  soil. 

The  example  of  Grenville  led  to  infinite  mischief.  He  sent  Manteo  to 
the  mainland  to  announce  their  arrival,  and  soon  followed  him  with  Lane, 
Cavendish,  Harriot  and  others.  For  eight  days  they  explored  the  country, 
and  were  hospitably  entertained  everywhere.  How  was  that  hospitality 
requited?  At  an  Indian  village  a silver  cup  was  stolen  from  the  English 
and  was  not  immediately  restored  on  demand.  Grenville  ordered  the  whole 
town  to  be  burned,  and  the  standing  corn  around  it  destroyed.  A flame  of 
indignation,  furious  and  destructive,  was  enkindled  in  the  savage  mind, 
which  could  not  be  quenched.  Unsuspicious  of  the  consequences  of  his 
act,  the  commander  left  the  colonists  and  returned  to  England  with  his  ships. 
These  all  became  pirates  on  the  sea ; and  Grenville  was  warmly  welcomed 
when  he  entered  the  harbor  of  Plymouth  with  his  vessels  laden  with  plunder 
from  Spanish  galleons  and  other  vessels. 

Lane  was  delighted  with  the  country,  and  in  a letter  which  he  sent  home 
by  Grenville,  he  wrote : “ It  is  the  goodliest  soil  under  the  cope  of  Heaven  ; 
the  most  pleasing  territory  of  the  world ; the  continent  is  of  a huge  and 
unknown  greatness,  and  very  well  peopled  and  towned,  though  savagely. 
The  climate  is  so  wholesome,  that  we  have  not  one  sick  since  we  have 
touched  the  land.  If  Virginia  had  but  horses  and  kine,  and  were  inhabited 
by  English,  no  realm  in  Christendom  were  comparable  to  it.” 

Harriot  was  a man  of  keen  observation,  and  looked  upon  everj'thing  with 
the  eye  of  a Christian  philosopher.  He  perceived  that  the  way  to  have  the 
country  permanently  “ inhabited  by  English,”  and  supplied  with  “ horses 
and  kine,”  was  to  treat  the  natives  kindly  as  friends  and  neighbors.  He 
deprecated  the  conduct  of  Grenville,  and  tried  to  quench  the  fires  o.  revenge 
which  the  leader’s  cruelty  had  enkindled.  The  Indians  were  curious  and 
credulous.  Many  of  them  regarded  the  persons  of  the  English  with  rever- 
ence and  awe.  Their  fire-arms,  burning-glasses,  mathematical  instruments, 
clocks,  watches,  and  books  seemed  to  the  savage  mind  like  the  work  of  the 
gods.  The  colonists  were  never  sick  and  had  no  women  with  them,  and  so 
the  natives  imagined  that  they  were  not  born  of  woman  and  were  there- 
fore immortal — men  of  ancient  days  who  had  risen  to  immortality. 
Taking  advantage  of  this  feeling,  Harriot  displayed  the  Bible  every- 
where, told  them  of  its  grand  and  precious  truths,  and  inspired  them 
with  such  a love  for  it,  that  they  often  pressed  it  affectionately  to  their 
bosoms.  King  Wingina  became  very  ill.  He  sent  for  Harriot,  who  found 
him  in  his  bough-covered  cabin  on  a couch  of  soft  moss,  with  a 
priest  making  mysterious  movements  over  the  invalid,  a “ medicine 


148 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  1. 


man”  offering  him  a decoction  from  a calabash,  and  a dancing  juggler 
contorting  his  body  and  grimacing  fearfully  to  drive  away  the  Evil  Spirit. 
Wingina  dismissed  all  of  these  attendants,  placed  himself  under  the  care 
of  Harriot,  and  asked  the  prayers  of  the  English.  He  recovered,  and  his 
example  was  followed  by  many  of  his  subjects. 

Had  the  other  colonists  been  as  wise  and  good  as  Harriot,  all  might  have 
been  well.  But  they  were  greedy  for  gold.  Governor  Lane  had  the  fever, 
and  all  trusted  more  to  their  fire-arms  than  to  friendship  for  the  good-will  of 
the  Indians.  The  natives  were  treated  with  scorn  and  sometimes  with 
cruelty,  which  kept  alive  the  flame  of  vengeance.  Seeing  the  Englishmen’s 
greed  for  gold,  they  told  them  marvellous  stories  of  a land  at  the  headwaters 
of  the  Roanoke  which  was  filled  with  the  precious  metals,  and  where  the 
houses  were  lined  with  pearls^  They  told  them  that  the  source  of  the 
Roanoke  was  in  a rock  so  near  the  Pacific  Ocean,  that  sometimes  the  salt 
waves  dashed  over  into  the  fountain.  All  this  was  told  that  the  English 
might  go  in  search  of  that  land,  and  so  divided  and  weakened,  the  Indians 
might  fall  upon  and  destroy  them.  The  red  men  guessed  shrewdly,  for  Lane 
believed  their  stories,  and  with  a large  number  of  followers  went  up  the 
swift  stream  of  the  Roanoke,  until  he  was  satisfied  that  he  had  been  deceived 
by  pure  fictions.  He  turned  back,  and  his  sudden  reappearance  discomfited 
the  Indians,  who  had  planned  an  attack  upon  the  divided  settlers.  Their 
wrath  was  only  checked,  but  not  subdued.  They  regarded  the  fire-arms  of 
the  English  as  demons,  and  that  the  great  sickness  which  then  prevailed  as 
the  effects  of  wounds  given  by  invisible  bullets  that  came  from  unseen 
agents  in  the  air.  Believing  that  more  Englishmen  were  coming  to  take 
their  lands,  they  so  yearned  to  exterminate  the  intruders  that  they  could  not 
conceal  their  enmity. 

Lane,  impressed  with  the  belief  that  there  was  a wide-spread  conspiracy 
to  destroy  his  colony,  prepared  to  strike  the  first  blow.  He  invited  Wingina 
and  his  principal  chiefs  to  a friendly  conference.  They  showed  their  con- 
fidence in  the  strangers  by  appearing  without  weapons.  At  a preconcerted 
signal.  Lane  and  his  followers  fell  upon  the  Indians  and  murdered  the  king 
and  all  of  his  companions.  Thenceforth  each  party  stood  on  the  defensive, 
and  v^ery  soon  the  condition  of  the  English  became  desperate.  Their  pro- 
visions were  exhausted ; no  ships  came  from  England  with  supplies,  and  no 
food  could  be  obtained  from  the  Indians.  Only  the  woods  and  waters  offered 
them  a precarious  subsistence,  and  they  were  on  the  verge  of  despair,  when 
they  saw,  one  day,  the  joyful  apparition  of  white  sails  coming  in  from  the 
sea.  It  was  the  fleet  of  Sir  Francis  Drake,  who  was  returning  from  his  raid 
upon  Spanish  towns  and  settlements,  and  looked  in  upon  the  colonists 


Chap,  XII. 


RALEIGH’S  WAGER  WITH  THE  QUEEN. 


149 


that  he  might  report  their  condition  to  his  friend  Raleigh.  He  offered  them 
aid  and  encouragement,  but  they  were  so  thoroughly  despondent  that  they 
begged  and  received  permission  to  return  to  England  in  the  baronet’s  ships. 

Whilst  they  were  in  Virginia,  Lane  and  his  associates  had  acquired  a 
taste  for  smoking  tobacco,  a habit  which  prevailed  among  the  natives ; and 
they  were  the  first  persons  who  carried  the  plant  into  England.  The  Span- 
iards and  Portuguese  had  introduced  it  on  the  continent.  Raleigh  adopted 
and  encouraged  its  use  in  England,  and  very  soon  the  habit  became  so  wide- 
spread that  the  demand  exceeded  the  supply.  It  became  the  staple  product 
of  Virginia  and  a bond  of  union  between  England  and  some  of  her  Ameri- 
can colonies,  as  well  as  a source  of  much  revenue.  It  is  said  that  Queen 
Elizabeth  became  Raleigh’s  apt  pupil  in  the  art  of  smoking  tobacco.  One 


day  whilst  she  and  the  courtier  and  two  or  three  others  were  indulging  in 
the  habit,  Raleigh  offered  a wager  that  he  would  ascertain  the  weight  of 
smoke  that  should  issue  from  her  lips  in  a given  time.  Elizabeth  accepted 
the  challenge.  Raleigh  weighed  the  tobacco  that  was  put  in  her  pipe,  and 
then  weighed  the  ashes  that  remained  in  it ; the  difference  in  the  weight  he 
assigned  as  the  weight  of  the  smoke.  The  queen,  laughing,  acknowledged 
that  he  had  won  the  wager,  and  said  he  was  the  first  alchemist  she  had  ever 
heard  of  who  had  succeeded  in  turning  smoke  into  gold. 

Drake’s  ships  had  scarcely  left  the  coast  when  a vessel  appeared  with  sup- 
plies for  the  fugitive  colonists.  Finding  the  post  abandoned,  the  ship 


150 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  1. 


returned  to  England  ; and  a fortnight  after  it  left  Roanoke,  Sir  Richard 
Grenville  arrived  with  three  well-furnished  ships,  and  searched  in  vain  for  the 
settlers.  Unwilling  to  give  up  the  possession  of  the  country,  he  left  fifteen 
men  there  to  protect  the  rights  of  England,  and  then  he,  too,  returned  home. 

Raleigh  was  not  dismayed  by  these  mishaps.  Lane,  whose  failure  as  a 
leader  was  conspicuous,  gave  a gloomy  account  of  the  country,  but  the 
report  of  the  learned  Harriot  was  so  encouraging,  that  Raleigh  found  very 
little  difficulty  in  gathering  another  colony,  and  of  better  materials.  They 
were  not  gold-seekers,  but  agriculturists  and  artisans,  with  their  wives  and 
children,  who  consented  to  become  permanent  settlers  in  America.  John 
White  was  appointed  governor  of  the  colony,  with  eleven  assistants,  and  late 
in  April,  1587,  a squadron  of  three  ships,  fitted  out  at  Raleigh’s  expense, 
sailed  for  the  Chesapeake  Bay,  where  the  proprietor  intended  to  plant  his 
farming  settlement.  White  went  first  to  Roanoke,  and  proceeded  no 
further.  He  arrived  there  in  July,  when  he  found  the  little  fort  built  by 
Lane  broken  down  ; the  huts  of  the  former  colonists  overgrown  by  rank 
weeds  and  inhabited  by  wild  deer,  and  a heap  of  human  bones  that  told  the 
sad  fate  of  Grenville’s  “ protectors  of  the  rights  of  England.” 

The  new  colonists  wisely  resolved  to  cultivate  the  friendship  of  the 
Indians,  but  some  of  the  latter  appeared  hostile  and  killed  one  of  the  assist- 
ants. Manteo,  who  lived  on  Croatan  Island,  came  with  his  mother  and  rela- 
tives, and  invited  them  to  make  their  abode  on  his  domain,  when  White 
took  the  opportunity  to  have  the  chief  receive  the  rite  of  Christian  baptism, 
and  to  bestow  upon  him  the  order  of  a feudal  baron  as  “ Lord  of  Roanoke,” 
by  the  command  of  Raleigh.  This  was  the  first  and  last  peerage  ever 
created  on  the  soil  of  our  Republic. 

For  a time  matters  went  on  smoothly,  when  an  unlucky  mistake  of  the 
English  in  attacking  friendly  Indians  produced  bad  blood.  At  about  the 
same  time  it  became  necessary  for  the  ships  to  return  to  England  for  sup- 
plies. White  was  persuaded  to  go  with  them  that  he  might  hasten  their 
return.  He  left  behind  him  eighty-nine  men,  seventeen  women  and  two 
children.  Among  these  was  his  daughter,  Eleanor  Dare,  wife  of  one  of  his 
assistants,  who  had  given  birth  to  a daughter  since  her  arrival,  to  whom  they 
gave  the  name  of  Virginia — Virginia  Dare.  On  his  way.  White  touched 
Ireland,  where  he  left  some  potato  plants,  the  first  ever  seen  in  Europe. 

When  White  returned  home,  he  found  his  countrymen  in  commotion  on 
account  of  a threatened  invasion  from  Spain,  and  all  the  great  naval  cap- 
tains, as  well  as  Raleigh,  were  engaged  in  plans  for  averting  the  evil.  But 
the  latter,  by  great  exertions,  sent  White  back  with  supplies  in  two  ships  in 
April,  1588.  The  greed  of  the  governor  made  him  neglect  his  first  duty. 


Chap.  XII. 


A LOST  COLONY. 


151 

Instead  of  going  directly  to  Virginia,  he  chased  Spanish  ships  in  search  of 
plunder.  Both  of  his  vessels  were  so  much  injured  that  he  was  compelled  to 
take  them  back  to  England,  and  it  was  not  until  1590,  a year  after  the  defeat 
of  the  “Invincible  Armada”  of  Spain  in  the  British  Channel,  that  White 
was  permitted  to  go  in  search  of  the  colony  and  his  daughter.  He  sailed 
with  two  ships,  and  found  Roanoke  desolate.  Had  the  colonists  perished, 
or  were  they  somewhere  in  the  wilderness  ? 

This  question  has  never  been  answered.  An  inscription  on  the  bark  of  a 
tree  seemed  to  indicate  that  they  had  gone  to  Croatan.  It  was  late  in  the 
season,  and  fearing  the  fearful  storms  which  he  knew  prevailed  on  the  coast 
at  that  period.  White  searched  no  further  but  hastened  back  to  England 
with  the  sad  tidings  of  the  uncertain  fate  of  the  colonists.  It  was  conjec- 
tured that  the  faithful  Lord  of  Roanoke  had  saved  their  lives,  and  when 
they  seemed  to  be  abandoned  by  their  countrymen,  they  had  been  incorpo- 
rated with  a native  tribe  and  amalgamated  with  them.  This  conjecture 
finds  plausibility  in  a tradition  of  the  Hatteras  Indians  at  a later  period, 
which  averred  that  such  was  the  fate  of  the  colony ; and  some  find  confirma- 
tion of  the  tradition  in  the  fact  that  when  European  settlements  were  finally' 
made  in  that  region,  individuals  of  the  Hatteras  family  bore  the  mingled 
physical  characteristics  of  the  Indian  and  the  Englishman.  Perhaps  when 
Jamestown  was  founded  on  the  river  of  Powhatan,  when  Virginia  Dare  was 
twenty  years  of  age,  she  was  a beautiful  young  Indian  queen  on  the  banks 
of  the  Roanoke.  Who  knows? 

Raleigh’s  means  were  now  exhausted.  He  had  spent  about  two  liundrcd 
thousand  dollars  in  vain  attempts  to  colonize  Virginia  and  in  assisting  other 
kindred  enterprises;  and  he  was  compelled  to  abandon,  in  a degree,  his 
magnificent  scheme.  He  formed  a company  of  merchants  and  adventurers 
under  his  charter,  to  whom  he  assigned  a portion  of  his  rights.  Lacking  his 
spirit  and  enthusiasm,  they  did  nothing  more  than  carry  on  a petty  trade 
with  Virginia  for  awhile,  and  at  the  time  of  Queen  Elizabeth’s  death,  in 
1603,  there  was  not  a single  Englishman  settled  in  all  America.  Raleigh 
did  not,  for  a long  time,  abandon  the  hope  of  finding  the  lost  colonists  of 
Roanoke ; and  it  is  said  that  he  sent  persons  five  different  times,  at  his  own 
expense,  to  search  for  them,  but  no  traces  could  be  found.  The  failure  of 
Raleigh’s  colonization  scheme  was  caused  chiefly  by  the  incompetence  of 
his  agents. 

Among  the  statesmen  and  adventurers  of  England  who  directed  the 
earliest  efforts  of  subjects  of  that  realm  for  the  colonization  of  America,  the 
name  of  Raleigh  will  ever  stand  brightest.  In  courage,  perseverance,  com- 
prehensive views,  lavish  expenditure  and  ever-buoyant  hopefulness,  he  had 


152 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Hook  1. 


no  peer.  He  was  not  only  a soldier  and  statesman,  but  he  was  a historian, 
poet  and  philosopher — a scholar  in  most  departments  of  learning.  When, 
at  the  age  of  about  thirty-seven  years,  he  abandoned  the  scheme  for 
colonizing  Virginia,  he  proceeded  to  perform  other  services  which,  alone, 
would  have  made  his  name  immortal.  He  did  much  toward  the  destruc- 
tion of  the  Spanish  Armada ; accompanied  Drake  in  his  expedition  to  seat 
Don  Antonio  on  the  throne  of  Portugal  ; brought  Edmund  Spenser  from 
Ireland  and  introduced  him  to  the  queen ; discovered  the  “ large,  rich  and 
beautiful  empire  of  Guiana,”  in  South  America  : assisted  in  the  capture  of 
Cadiz ; was  ambassador  to  the  Netherlands,  and  governor  of  the  island  of 
Jersey.  Immoralities  stained  his  fair  fame,  and  when  Elizabeth  died  in 
1603,  the  sun  of  his  glory  went  down  among  clouds,  yet  none  the  brighter 
in  itself  because  obscured  to  the  visions  of  men.  When  King  James 
of  Scotland  came  to  the  throne  of  England,  he  stripped  Raleigh  of  all  his 
preferments.  The  great  man  was  then  a paralytic,  but  his  lofty  spirit  bore 
him  above  repining. 

Raleigh  was  soon  afterward  arrested  on  a false  charge  of  conspiring  to 
place  Arabella  Stuart  on  the  English  throne,  and  on  conviction  without 
proof  he  was  condemned  to  death.  Reprieved,  he  was  sent  to  the  Tower, 
where  he  was  confined  many  years,  accompanied  much  of  the  time  by  his 
faithful  wife,  who  had  been  one  of  Elizabeth’s  maids  of  honor.  There  he 
was  in  1615,  when  the  base  and  avaricious  king,  wanting  his  services  to 
search  for  gold  in  Guiana,  released  him  from  prison,  on  condition  that  he 
would  go  there,  but  did  not  pardon  him.  Raleigh  was  then  sixty-three 
years  of  age  and  an  invalid  ; but  he  went  to  South  America  with  fourteen 
ships,  in  the  fitting  out  of  which  he  embarked  the  whole  of  his  wife’s  fortune 
and  his  own.  The  expedition  was  a failure,  and  he  returned  to  Plymouth  in 
the  summer  of  1618  a wreck  in  fortune,  health,  reputation  and  spirits.  The 
king,  disappointed  in  his  expectations  of  wealth  as  the  fruits  of  the  expedition, 
and  jealous  of  Raleigh  even  in  his  almost  helplessness,  recommitted  the  old 
man  to  the  Tower,  and  soon  afterward  caused  him  to  be  beheaded,  in  execu- 
tion of  the  unjust  sentence  pronounced  fifteen  years  before.  “ This  is  a sharp 
medicine,  but  it  is  a cure  for  all  diseases,”  said  the  white-haired  patriot,  on  the 
scaffold,  as  he  felt  the  keen  edge  of  the  axe  and  handed  it  to  the  executioner. 

That  murderous  act  of  King  James  was  one  of  the  foulest  of  all  the  foul 
performances  of  the  detested  monarch.  Upon  the  altar  of  his  lust  he  sac- 
rificed one  of  the  noblest  patriots,  far-seeing  statesmen  and  brilliant  scholars 
of  the  British  realm.  Raleigh’s  very  existence,  even  in  the  obscurity  of 
the  Tower,  wherein  he  wrote  his  “ History  of  the  World,”  was  a perpetual 
honor  to  the  reign  of  the  bad  king. 


Chap.  XII. 


COLONIZATION  BEGUN. 


153 


Raleigh  had  lived  to  see  his  scheme  for  colonizing  Virginia  carried  out 
by  other""  Englishmen.  Ten  years  before  his  death,  when  he  was  in  the 
Tower,  Jamestown  was  founded;  and  when  the  axe  finished  his  earthly 
course,  a congregation  of  English  Puritans  were  contemplating  that  emigra- 
tion to  America  which  occurred  two  years  later,  and  which  resulted  in  the 
founding  of  the  commonwealths  of  New  England.  The  French  navigator. 


RALEIGH  ON  THE  SCAFFOLD. 


Champlain,  had  laid  the  foundations  of  a permanent  settlement  on  the  St. 
Lawrence  River ; and  whilst  Raleigh  was  in  Guiana,  the  Dutch  were  laying 
plans  for  a colony  in  New  Netherland,  which  Hudson  had  discovered  a few 
years  before.  George  Calvert  had  just  received  the  honors  of  knighthood, 
taken  a seat  in  the  Privy  Council,  and  gained  that  special  friendship  of  King 
James  which  finally  led  to  his  elevation  to  the  peerage  as  Lord  Baltimore, 


J54 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  1. 


his  attempts  to  colonize  Newfoundland,  and  the  possession  of  the  fine 
domain  of  Maryland  by  his  family.  And  after  a lapse  of  almost  two  cen- 
turies, the  inhabitants  of  North  Carolina,  on  the  shores  of  whose  State  the 
great  adventurer  had  made  his  attempts  at  settlement,  showed  their  sense 
of  justice  by  giving  to  their  capital  the  name  of  Raleigh. 


I 


CHAPTER  XIII. 


EXPLORATIONS  OF  THE  NEW  ENGLAND  COASTS  BY  ENGLISH  NAVIGATORS — GRAND  SCHEME  FOR 
COLONIZING  VIRGINIA  PATRONIZED  BY  THE  BRITISH  MONARCH  — CHARTERS  GRANTED  — 
ATTEMPTS  OF  THE  FRENCH  TO  PLANT  SETTLEMENTS  IN  AMERICA — SAMUEL  CHAMPLAIN 
FOUNDS  QUEBEC  AND  MONTREAL — HE  DISCOVERS  AND  NAMES  LAKE  CHAMPLAIN — WITH  THE 
HELP  OF  THE  JESUITS  HE  ESTABLISHES  THE  FRENCH  DOMINION  IN  AMERICA — THE  STORY  OF 
THE  VOYAGES  AND  DISCOVERIES  OF  HENRY  HUDSON — HIS  SAD  FATE — THE  DISCOVERERS. 

The  enthusiasm  which  Raleigh  had  created  in  England  in  favor  of 
American  discovery  and  colonization  did  not  die  out  in  conse- 
quence of  his  conspicuous  failures.  Some  of  his  associates  con- 
tinued to  believe  in  the  rich  promises  which  such  colonization  held  out. 
Among  these  believers  was  Bartholomew  Gosnold,  who  had  made  a voyage 
to  America,  and  jvho,  like  Raleigh,  had  not  lost  faith.  They  were  much 
together ; and  when  the  Earl  of  Southampton  offered  to  fit  out  a bark  for 
the  purpose  of  attempting  to  plant  a small  settlement  in  America  if  Gosnold 
would  command  the  vessel,  that  navigator’s  illustrious  friend  advised  him  to 
do  so.  They  had  talked  much  about  the  northern  and  southern  tracks 
across  the  Atlantic,  which  were  then  followed  by  ships  from  England,  and 
they  believed  that  a more  direct  route  might  be  taken  a thousand  leagues 
shorter  than  by  way  of  the  Canaries  and  the  West  Indies.  On  the  26th 
of  April,  1602,  Gosnold  sailed  from  Falmouth  in  a small  vessel,  with  twenty 
colonists  and  eight  mariners  on  the  proposed  direct  track,  and  touched  the 
American  continent  at  near  Nahant,  in  Massachusetts  Bay,  it  is  supposed, 
just  eighteen  days  after  his  departure  from  England.  Finding  no  good 
harbor  there,  he  sailed  southward,  discovered  a great  sandy  point  which  he 
named  Cape  Cod,  because  of  the  profusion  of  codfishes  seen  near  its  shores, 
and  landed  there  with  four  of  his  men.  Never  before  had  the  present  route 
of  ships  from  Europe  to  New  England  and  New  York  been  traversed ; never 
before  had  the  soil  of  New  England  been  pressed  by  the  foot  of  an  English- 
man. 

Doubling  the  Cape,  Gosnold  passed  around  the  promontory  of  Gayhead, 
which  he  named  Dover  Cliff,  and  entered  Buzzard’s  Bay,  where  he  found  a 
group  of  attractive  islands.  He  named  the  westernmost  Elizabeth,  in  honor 


156 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  1. 


of  his  queen,  and  the  whole  group  now  bear  that  name.  On  Elizabeth, 
Gosnold  and  his  followers  landed.  They  were  charmed  with  the  aspects  of 
nature  there.  Vegetation  was  luxuriant,  and  small  fruits,  such  as  straw- 
berries, raspberries,  and  growing  grapes  were  abundant.  There  the  navi- 
gator resolved  to  plant  his  little  colony,  and  on  a small  rocky  island,  in  the 
bosom  of  a great  pond,  they  built  a rude  stone-house  and  a fort. 

Elizabeth  Island  now  bears  its  original  Indian  name  of  Cattyhunk.  Had 
the  courage  of  the  adventurers  held  out,  they  would  there  have  won  the 
honor  of  making  the  first  permanent  English  settlement  in  America.  But  it 
did  not  hold  out.  They  thought  the  Indians  scowled  upon  them  ; they  were 
not  sure  of  food  in  the  future  ; they  could  not  agree  upon  a method  for 
dividing  profits  ; what  may  the  winter  be  ? was  a serious  question,  and  a 
wilting  home-sickness  came  upon  them.  So,  when  Gosnold  had  laden  his 
vessel  with  sassafras  root,  then  much  esteemed  in  Europe  for  its  medical 
properties ; also  with  furs  gathered  by  traffic  with  the  natives,  and  sweet 
cedar-wood  and  other  products,  and  was  ready  to  sail  for  home,  the  colonists 
resolved  to  go  with  him.  They  abandoned  their  little  paradise  of  beauty, 
and  in  less  than  four  months  after  their  departure  from  home,  they  were 
back  on  the  soil  of  England.  They  spoke  in  glowing  terms  of  the  serenity 
of  the  climate,  and  the  beauty  and  fertility  of  the  land  they  had  visited  ; of 
the  shortness  and  safety  of  the  voyage  to  it,  and  of  the  riches  of  the  adja- 
cent continent  which  might  be  gathered  by  traffic  with  the  Indians.  Raleigh 
strongly  advised  further  efforts  toward  planting  a colony  in  that  part  of 
America;  so  also  did  Richard  Hakluyt,  prebendary  of  Westminster — a 
man  learned  in  naval  and  commercial  science,  the  counsellor  of  many  who 
had  engaged  in  the  expeditions  to  America,  and  who  became  the  historian 
of  those  voyages.  Under  the  advice  of  such  men,  Bristol  merchants  fitted 
out  two  ships  for  traffic  and  discovery  on  the  coast  of  what  was  afterward 
called  New  England. 

Early  in  April  (1603,  about  a fortnight  after  the  death  of  the  queen),  the 
Speedwell,  of  fifty  tons,  and  the  Discoverer,  a bark  of  twenty-six  tons,  sailed 
from  Milford  Haven  under  the  command  of  Martin  Bring,  a friend  of  Raleigh 
and  Gosnold.  Bring  commanded  the  Speedwell  in  person,  which  was 
manned  by  thirty  men  and  boys.  William  Browne  w'as  master  of  the  Dis- 
coverer, and  was  accompanied  by  Robert  Galterns  as  a supercargo  or  general 
agent  of  the  expedition.  Galterns  had  accompanied  Gosnold  to  America. 
They  were  furnished  with  clothing,  axes,  and  trinkets  for  the  natives ; and 
early  in  June  the  vessels  entered  Benobscot  Bay.  They  went  up  the  Benob- 
scot  River  some  distance,  and  then  sailing  along  the  coast,  they  entered  the 
mouths  of  the  Saco,  Kennebunk,  and  Biscataqua  rivers  on  the  coast  of 


Chap.  XIII. 


THE  NEW  ENGLAND  COASTS  EXPLORED. 


157 


Maine.  Gorges  says  Pring  “ made  a perfect  discovery  of  all  these  eastern 
rivers  and  harbors.”  That,  however,  was  done  three  years  later,  when  Pring 
was  on  another  voyage. 

Sailing  southward,  Pring  and  his  companions  went  to  the  region  where 
Gosnold  and  his  handful  of  adventurers  had  tarried  for  awhile,  and  landed  on 
a large  island  abounding  with  grapes,  which  they  named  Martin’s  Vineyard, 
now  Martha’s  Vineyard.  Thence  they  returned  to  England,  after  an  absence 
of  six  months.  Pring  made  a report  confirming  everything  that  Gosnold 
had  told  about  the  country.  This  confirmation  led  to  other  expeditions, 
and  in  1605  the  Earl  of  Southampton  and  Lord  Arundel,  of  Wardour,  fitted 
out  a vessel,  placed  it  under  the  command  of  George  Weymouth,  another 
friend  of  the  now  imprisoned  Raleigh,  and  dispatched  it  to  the  eastern 
coasts  of  New  England.  Weymouth  had  already  explored  the  coast  of 
Labrador  in  an  attempt  to  discover  a northwest  passage  to  India.  He  sailed 
from  England  in  March,  taking  the  shorter  track,  but  storms  delayed  him 
on  the  way,  and  it  was  six  weeks  before  he  saw  America,  at  Nantucket. 
Turning  northward,  he  entered  Penobscot  Bay,  where  he  opened  a traffic 
with  the  natives.  It  was  carried  on  for  awhile  in  mutual  confidence  until 
signs  of  treachery  appeared  on  the  part  of  the  Indians,  when  Weymouth 
determined  to  resent  the  affront.  He  invited  some  of  the  leading  savages 
to  a feast  on  board  of  his  vessel,  but  only  three  of  the  cautious  natives 
accepted  the  invitation.  There  he  fed  them  and  plied  them  with  intoxicat- 
ing drink,  until  they  were  half  insensible,  when  he  confined  them  in  the 
hold  of  his  ship.  Then  he  went  on  shore  with  some  of  his  men  to  entice 
others  on  board.  They  opened  boxes  and  showed  the  natives  trinkets,  but 
they  could  not  induce  the  savages  to  go  to  the  vessel ; so  Weymouth  and 
his  men  seized  two  of  them.  “ It  was  as  much  as  five  or  six  of  us  could  do 
to  get  them  into  the  light  horseman”  [the  boat],  wrote  Weymouth,  “for 
they  were  strong,  and  so  naked  as  our  best  hold  was  by  their  long  hair  on 
their  heads.”  The  Englishmen  took  with  the  captives  two  handsome  birch- 
bark  canoes,  when  the  anchor  was  taken  up  and  the  ship  sailed  away  for 
England  with  the  five  dusky  prisoners.  The  canoes,  like  one  carried  home 
by  Pring,  attracted  much  attention  as  the  work  of  savages.  Three  of  the 
captives  were  given  to  Sir  Fernando  Gorges,  then  Governor  of  Plymouth, 
(who  was  a fast  friend  of  Raleigh),  and  remained  in  his  family  three  years, 
during  which  time  they  acquired  considerable  knowledge  of  the  English  lan- 
guage. This  kidnapping  left  on  the  shores  of  New  England  the  seeds  of 
much  future  trouble. 

All  doubts  respecting  the  commercial  value  of  every  part  of  the  Ameri- 
can coast  from  Florida  to  Newfoundland  had  now  vanished  from  the  English 


158 


OUR  COUxNTKY. 


Ho(;k  1. 


mind,  and  the  voyage  of  Weymouth  was  immediately  followed  by  the  imme- 
diate execution  of  a vast  plan  for  colonizing  the  shores  of  this  Western 
World.  King  James  was  petitioned  to  sanction  by  his  authority  an  organi- 
zation for  the  purpose.  He  not  only  did  so  willingly,  but  he  warmly  com- 
mended the  enterprise.  He  had  seen  the  good  effects  of  introducing  indus- 
trious artisans  and  traders  from  the  lowlands  among  the  wilder  Highlanders 
of  his  native  country;  and  as  war  with  France  had  lately  ceased,  there  was 
a large  number  of  restless,  unoccupied  soldiers  in  England  for  whom  he 
would  gladly  open  a new  field  of  enterprise.  Moved  by  these  consider- 
ations, he  issued  letters-patent,  on  the  20th  of  April,  1606,  to  Sir  Thomas 
Gates,  Sir  George  Somers,  Richard  Hakluyt  and  others,  granting  to  them 
those  territories  in  America  lying  on  the  sea-coast  between  the  thirty-fourth 
and  forty-fifth  degree  of  north  latitude,  together  with  all  the  islands  situated 
within  a hundred  miles  of  their  shores;  that  is  to  say,  from  Cape  Fear  to 
Nova  Scotia.  The  design  of  this  patent  was  declared  to  be  “to  make  habi- 
tation and  plantation,  and  to  deduce  a colony  of  sundry  of  our  people  into 
that  part  of  America  commonly  called  Virginia.”  The  charter  proclaimed 
that  “ so  noble  a work  may,  by  the  Providence  of  Almighty  God,  hereafter 
tend  to  the  glory  of  his  Divine  Majesty,  in  propagating  of  Christian  religion 
to  such  people  as  yet  live  in  darkness  and  miserable  ignorance  of  the  true 
knowledge  and  worship  of  God,  and  may,  in  time,  bring  the  infidels  and 
savages  living  in  those  parts  to  human  civility,  and  to  a settled  and  quiet 
government.” 

The  patentees  were  principally  merchants  and  advi.-nturcrs  of  London. 
Plymouth  and  Bristol,  and  by  their  charter  they  were  required  to  form  two 
companies,  each  under  a distinct  title  ; the  one  consisting  of  London  adven- 
turers to  be  called  the  “ London  Company,”  and  the  one  composed  of 
“ knights,  gentlemen  and  merchants”  of  the  West  of  England,  the  “Ply- 
mouth Company.”  The  vast  domain  was  divided  into  two  districts,  called 
respectively  North  and  South  Virginia,  the  line  of  separation  being  about 
on  the  parallel  of  New  York  City. 

Now  dawned  the  bright  era  when  English  colonies  were  permanently 
planted  in  America.  The  story  of  their  marvellous  growth  will  be  told  here- 
after. Raleigh,  poor  and  in  prison,  was  not  allowed  to  share,  personally,  in 
the  glory  of  any  of  that  fruitful  seed-time,  the  result  of  his  genius,  gene- 
rosity and  enterprise.  When  Richard  Hakluyt,  Bartholomew  Gosnold,  and 
Sir  Fernando  Gorges,  three  of  his  firm  friends,  were  permitted  by  the  king 
to  visit  the  illustrious  prisoner  in  the  Tower,  and  tell  him  of  the  new  enter- 
prise, the  interview  was  a touching  one.  They  found  Raleigh  seated  at  a 
little  table  near  an  open  window  in  the  massive  wall,  tall  and  narrow,  writ- 


Chap.  XIII. 


RALEIGH  VISITED  IN  PRISON. 


159 


ing.  Around  him  lay  huge  folios.  On  the  walls  hung  maps,  and  on  the 
deep  window-sill  was  a mariner’s  compass.  Near  him  sat  his  faithful  wife, 
almost  twenty  years  younger  than  he,  who  had  just  come  to  share  his 
imprisonment.  At  her  feet  lay  a sleeping  spaniel  belonging  to  the  keeper 
of  the  Tower;  and  a picture  of  their  son  who  was  killed  in  Guiana  leaned 
against  a small  cabinet  at  her  side.  When  the  three  friends  entered,  Raleigh 
quickly  arose  and  embraced  them  affectionately.  When  they  told  him  of  the 
great  enterprise  and  the  king’s  sanction,  he  sat  down  in  his  chair,  and  with 
clasped  hands  and  eyes  turned 
heavenward  exclaimed  : “ God 

be  praised  for  his  goodness ! 

Prison  walls  cannot  defeat  his 
justice.  The  English  nation  love 
truth  and  will  defend  the  good 
name  of  her  disciples.  God  save 
the  king ! ” The  final  invocation 
was  for  the  cars  of  the  jailor  who 
stood  at  the  door.  It  had  a 
double  meaning  on  Raleigh’s  lips 
— a meaning  of  political  loyalty, 
or  an  earnest  prayer  for  the  sal- 
vation of  the  monarch  from  the 
consequences  of  his  bad  life.  It 
could  not  be  interpreted  to  Ra- 
leigh’s hurt. 

A Protestant  sovereign,  the 
great  Henry  of  Navarre,  was  now 
on  the  throne  of  France,  the  first 
and  best  of  her  Bourbon  kings. 

His  heart  was  set  on  promoting 
the  prosperity  and  true  greatness 
of  his  kingdom.  He  had  given  it 
peace  at  home  by  the  edict  of 

Nantes,  granting  toleration  to  his  Protestant  subjects,  proclaimed  on  the 
fifteenth  of  April,  1598)  ‘ind  cessation  from  war  abroad  by  the  treaty  of 
Verviers  with  Spain,  signed  seventeen  days  afterward.  Agriculture,  manu- 
factures, mining,  internal  improvements,  and  settlements  in  New  France 
(America),  which  had  not  been  attempted  since  the  disappearance  of 
Robertval  more  than  fifty  years  before,  were  encouraged.  In  these  labors 
of  statesmanship  he  was  led  and  assisted  by  Maximilien  de  Bethune,  the 


KALEIGH  S JOY  IN  PRISON. 


i6o 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  1. 


great  Duke  of  Sully,  whose  name  shines  with  splendor  in  the  annals  of 
France. 

Among  the  earliest  of  the  new  French  adventurers  was  the  Marquis  de 
la  Roche,  a wealthy  nobleman,  who  gathered  a company  from  the  prisons  of 
France  wherewith  to  found  a colony  in  America.  He  sailed  with  a single 
ship  in  the  spring  of  1598,  and  landed  on  Sable  Island,  in  the  Atlantic 
Ocean,  ninety  miles  southeast  of  Nova  Scotia,  where  he  left  forty  men  and 
returned  to  France  for  supplies.  Before  he  was  ready  to  go  back,  he  sickened 
and  died,  and  the  poor  emigrants  had  no  tidings  from  home  or  the  rest  of 
the  world  for  seven  years.  Then  a vessel  was  sent  for  them,  but  only  twelve 
survived.  These  were  pardoned  on  their  return,  because  of  their  sufferings 
abroad,  and  their  immediate  wants  were  supplied  by  the  king. 

Whilst  these  men  were  on  Sable  Island,  another  expedition  was  sent 
from  France  on  a similar  errand.  M.  de  Chastes,  Governor  of  Dieppe, 
obtained  from  the  king  a charter  for  founding  settlements  in  New  France. 
He  engaged  Samuel  Champlain  of  the  French  navy,  a man  of  noble  lineage 
and  a favorite  of  the  sovereign,  to  act  as  his  delegate.  The  king  commis- 
sioned Champlain  lieutenant-general  of  Canada,  and  with  this  authority  he 
embarked  at  Honfleur  on  the  15th  of  March,  1603,  with  a single  vessel,  com- 
manded by  Pont-Grev6,  a skillful  mariner  of  St.  Malo,  whose  father  had 
been  an  intimate  friend  of  Cartier.  They  reached  the  St.  Lawrence  in  May, 
and  anchored  near  the  site  of  Quebec,  when  Pont-Grev6,  with  five  men,  went 
up  that  stream  in  a canoe  to  the  rapids  of  La  Chine,  above  Montreal,  where 
Cartier  found  an  impassable  barrier  to  his  upward  voyage.  Then  he  turned 
back,  carefully  examining  the  shores  of  the  river,  and  on  reaching  the  shijj 
he  gave  Champlain  a minute  account  of  all  they  had  observed.  Meanwhile, 
Champlain  had  held  intercourse  with  the  savages,  whose  memories  and 
traditions  ran  back  to  Cartier’s  kidnapping,  but  they  were  placable,  and  the 
lieutenant-general  was  pleased  with  all  he  saw.  They  returned  to  France  in 
the  early  autumn,  when  Champlain  published  an  account  of  the  country. 

When  the  voyagers  returned,  they  found  M.  Chastes  dead  and  the  con- 
cessions transferred  by  the  king  to  Pierre  de  Gast,  the  Sieur  de  Monts,  a 
wealthy  Huguenot,  who  had  received  the  commission  of  viceroy,  with  full 
power  for  settlement  and  rule  over  six  degrees  of  latitude  in  America, 
extending  from  that  of  Cape  May  to  the  parallel  of  Quebec.  That  region 
was  named,  in  the  charter,  L’Acadie,  a corruption  of  the  Greek  Arcadia. 
The  charter  was  published  in  all  the  maritime  towns  of  France,  and  soon 
afterward  De  Monts  and  his  associates  were  vested  with  the  monopoly  of 
the  fur  and  peltry  trade  of  his  domain,  and  around  the  Gulf  of  St.  Lawrence. 
A new  arrangement  was  made  with  Champlain,  and  early  in  March,  1604, 


Chap.  XIII. 


FRENCH  SETTLEMENTS  IN  ACADIE. 


l6l 


De  Monts,  with  his  bosom  friend  Poutrincourt  and  Pont-Grev6  as  his  lieu- 
tenants, and  Champlain  as  the  pilot,  sailed  from  France  with  four  vessels 
well  manned,  and  a goodly  company  of  Protestant  and  Roman  Catholic 
emigrants.  Among  the  latter  were  several  Jesuits.  They  reached  the  St. 
Lawrence  in  April,  when  they  found  the  river  ice-bound  and  the  weather  so 
cold  that  the  viceroy  determined  to  plant  his  settlement  further  to  the 
southward.  They  passed  around  Cape  Breton  and  Nova  Scotia  into  the 
Bay  of  Fundy,  and  on  the  northern  shore  of  the  Peninsula  they  anchored  in 
a fine  harbor  environed  by  hills  and  meadows,  early  in  May.  Poutrincourt 
was  so  charmed  by  the  appearance  of  the  country,  that  De  Monts  allowed 
him  to  remain  there  with  some  of  the  emigrants.  He  gave  him  a grant  of 
the  region,  which  was  confirmed  by  the  king,  and  Poutrincourt  named  the 
place  where  he  landed  Port  Royal.  It  is  now  Annapolis,  in  Nova  Scotia. 
De  Monts  and  the  rest  of  the  company,  seventy  in  number,  crossed  over  to 
Passamaquoddy  Bay,  and  on  an  island  not  far  from  the  mouth  of  the  St. 
Croix  River,  the  eastern  boundary  of  Maine,  they  landed,  built  a fort  with 
a chapel  in  it  and  cannon  mounted  on  it,  and  there  passed  a severe  winter. 
Half  of  them  were  dead  in  the  spring,  when  the  survivors  explored  the 
country  westward  as  far  as  Cape  Cod,  and  returned  to  Port  Royal,  where 
they  joined  Poutrincourt’s  colony.  Early  in  the  autumn,  De  Monts  and  Pou- 
trincourt returned  to  France,  leaving  Champlain  and  Pont-Greve  to  make 
further  explorations  of  the  region.  They  went  to  the  southwest  as  far  as 
Cape  Cod,  where  they  attempted  to  land  and  erect  a cross,  but  were  driven 
to  their  vessel  by  the  Indians.  In  1607,  Champlain  returned  to  France. 

For  a few  years  there  was  a struggle  for  existence  and  growth  on  the 
part  of  the  colonists  in  Acadia.  The  Jesuit  priests  who  accompanied  Pou- 
trincourt back  to  that  land  claimed  the  right  to  supreme  rule  by  virtue  of 
their  holy  office.  He  stoutly  resisted  their  claim,  and  told  them  boldly  : “ It 
is  my  part  to  rtilc  you  on  the  earth ; it  is  your  part  to  guide  me  to  heaven.” 
When  Poutrincourt  had  returned  to  France  they  made  the  same  claim  upon 
his  son,  whom  he  left  in  charge  of  the  colony.  The  fiery  young  man  threat- 
ened them  with  corporeal  punishment,  when  they  withdrew  and  settled  on 
the  island  of  Mount  Desert,  now  so  famous  as  a summer  resort,  and  there 
set  up  a cross  in  token  of  sovereignty.  They  were  there  in  1613,  when 
Samuel  Argali,  a freebooter  of  the  seas,  went,  under  the  sanction  of  the  gov- 
ernor of  Virginia,  to  expel  the  French  from  Acadie  as  intruders  upon  the 
domain  of  the  North  and  South  Virginia  Company.  The  Jesuits  on  Mount 
Desert,  it  is  said,  willing  to  use  such  an  opportunity  for  revenge,  piloted  the 
Englishmen  to  Port  Royal,  which  Argali  plundered  and  laid  in  ashes,  driving 
the  colonists  to  the  woods  and  breaking  up  the  settlement.  Acadie  was 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  1 


162 

again  settled  by  the  French,  who  suffered  many  vicissitudes  and  became  the 
subject  of  romance  and  song. 

De  Monts  was  not  disposed  to  contend  with  the  powerful  English  com- 
pany. He  obtained  a new  charter  with  ample  provisions,  and  proceeded  to 
plant  a colony  on  the  St.  Lawrence.  Two  vessels  were  fitted  out  in  the 
spring  of  1608,  freighted  with  colonists  and  supplies,  and  were  navigated 
under  the  direction  of  Pont-Grev6,  with  Champlain  as  governor.  They  were 
directed  to  form  a settlement  at  Tadousac  on  the  St.  Lawrence,  near  the 
mouth  of  the  Saguenay  River.  They  arrived  at  that  point  on  the  3d  of 
June.  Champlain  perceived  that  it  was  not  a good  place  for  a colony,  so  he 
directed  Pont-Grev6  to  sail  further  up  the  river.  They  entered  the  St. 
Charles,  where  Cartier  had  left  one  of  his  vessels,  and  on  its  banks  at  the 
foot  of  a rocky  promontory  he  chose  as  the  place  for  a settlement,  and  there 
he  laid  the  foundations  of  the  City  of  Quebec.  That  name  is  an  Indian 
word,  signifying  “ the  narrows,”  and  is  pronounced  Kcbec.  That  was  the 
first  permanent  French  settlement  planted  in  America.  It  grew,  for  the 
little  colony  took  firm  root  under  the  culture  of  Champlain.  He  opened  a 
profitable  fur  trade  with  the  Indians,  and  planted  a small  settlement  at  Mon- 
treal. The  colonists  were  induced  to  build  houses  and  plant  seeds ; yet 
there  were  malcontents  among  them,  who  conspired  to  murder  the  governor. 
The  plot  was  discovered ; the  ringleader  was  hanged,  and  order  and  obe- 
dience were  secured. 

Champlain,  regarding  the  Iroquois  in  northern  New  York  as  inimical  to 
his  colony  because  it  was  in  the  bosom  of  the  Huron  nation  who  were  their 
enemies,  allied  himself  to  the  Hurons  and  went  out  with  them  upon  the  war- 
path. In  the  summer  of  1609,  he,  with  a boat’s  crew,  went  with  the  Indian 
warriors  up  the  Sorel  or  Richelieu  River  to  the  Falls  of  Chambly,  where  he 
left  his  boat  and  the  crew,  and  with  only  two  men  pushed  on  in  a canoe  until 
he  discovered  a great  lake  between  two  distant  mountain  ranges — the  Green 
Mountains  and  the  Adirondacks.  He  gave  his  name  to  the  sheet  of  water, 
which  is  a beautiful,  appropriate,  and  eternal  monument  to  the  memory  of 
the  mariner.  On  its  shores  he  and  his  Indian  allies  had  a fight  with  their 
enemies,  and  then  returned  to  Quebec  with  fifty  scalps  as  trophies  of  war. 
In  September  of  that  year  Champlain  returned  to  France,  when  he  published 
an  account  of  Canada  and  of  his  adventures. 

The  following  spring  Champlain  returned,  stopping  at  Tadou.sac,  where 
he  borrowed  fifty  warriors  from  a chief,  with  whom  he  penetrated  the 
country  to  Lake  Champlain  to  fight  the  enemies  of  the  Hurons.  He  was 
defeated  and  wounded.  So  bad  was  his  hurt  that  when  he  reached  Quebec 
he  found  it  nece.ssary  to  return  to  France  to  have  medical  treatment.  The 


Chap.  XIII. 


CHAMPLAIN  IN  NORTHERN  NEW  YORK. 


163 


aspect  of  affairs  there  was  changed.  The  dagger  of  the  fanatic  Fran9ois 
Ravaillac  had  killed  his  king;  the  fortune  of  De  Monts  was  so  much  dimin- 
ished that  he  could  not  continue  the  settlement  at  Montreal  nor  foster  that 
at  Quebec,  and  it  appeared  as  if  there  were  to  be  another  ending  of  French 
settlements  in  America.  At  that  moment  the  queen-regent,  by  a judicious 
act,  saved  the  colony.  She  appointed  Charles  of  Bourbon  nominal  governor 
of  Canada,  and  the  prince  commissioned  Champlain  his  lieutenant  with  large 
powers.  So  strengthened,  the 
latter  returned  in  1612,  and  en- 
gaged vigorously  in  wars  and 
explorations.  Three  years  later 
he  invited  some  Jesuit  Fathers 
to  the  St.  Lawrence,  who  ac- 
companied him  in  expeditions 
of  discovery  extending  up  the 
Ottawa  River  and  westward  to 
Lake  Huron.  Turning  east- 
ward, they  traversed  the  wil- 
derness to  Lake  Ontario,  and 
exploring  that  magnificent  sheet 
of  water  its  whole  length,  and 
the  St.  Lawrence  to  a point  be- 
low Montreal,  they  returned  to 
Quebec. 

With  the  vision  of  a states- 
man, Champlain  saw  that  the 
country  with  which  he  had  made 
himself  acquainted  was  fitted  to 
become  the  seat  of  a magnificent 
colonial  empire  of  Frenchmen, 
and  he  resolved  to  do  all  in  his 
power  to  lay  the  solid  founda- 
tions of  such  an  empire.  He 

went  home,  and  in  1620 — the  THE  JESUIT  TEACHER. 

same  year  when  the  London 

Company  planted  a permanent  settlement  in  New  England — he  returned 
to  Canada  vested  with  the  authority  of  governor,  and  taking  with  him  his 
family  and  other  emigrants  with  their  families.  He  had  seen  the  amazing 
influence  of  the  Jesuit  fathers  over  the  Indian  mind.  He  had  also  per- 
ceived thai  an  alliance  with  the  red  men  would  be  essential  in  building  up 


164 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book.  I. 


and  making  permanent  his  future  empire.  To  make  them  good  allies,  it 
would  be  necessary  to  Christianize  the  savages;  so  he  invited  more  Jesuits 
to  come.  He  had,  very  soon,  as  coadjutors,  fifteen  Jesuit  priests  and  a con- 
siderable number  of  laymen.  A college  was  established  at  Quebec  for  the 
instruction  of  the  children  of  the  Hurons  in  civilized  modes  of  living,  the 
French  language,  and  the  theology  of  the  Roman  Catholic  Church.  These 
Jesuits  were  peculiarly  the  men  for  the  work; — sagacious,  far-seeing,  politic, 
zealous,  obedient,  devoted,  industrious,  persevering,  long-suffering  and  self- 
sacrificing- — men  of  the  world  who  could  adapt  themselves  to  every  condition 
and  plane  of  life,  from  the  pitiful  suppliant  as  a beggar  to  the  haughty  bear- 
ing of  a king.  They  worked  with  untiring  energy  and  signal  success  for 
religion  and  the  state. 

So  was  wisely  laid,  by  Samuel  Champlain,  the  foundation-stone  of  the 
French  empire  in  America;  a political  structure  which  always  displayed  as 
its  chief  source  of  strength  a firm  alliance  with  the  Indians  cemented  by  the 
religious  teachings  of  the  Jesuits,  which  made  the  dusky  tribes  and  the  pale- 
faces, to  a remarkable  extent,  one  in  the  Christian  faith.  So  were  secured 
those  alliances  in  emergencies,  between  the  French  and  Indians  in  America, 
already  alluded  to,  which  frequently  gave  the  English  colonists  much  and 
serious  trouble. 

Whilst  the  other  Western  nations  of  Europe  were  acquiring  glory  and 
solid  territorial  possessions  by  discoveries  in  America,  Holland,  then  the 
greatest  maritime  nation  on  the  earth,  was  quietly  winning  the  gains  of 
profitable  commerce  by  sending  her  uncouth  commercial  marine  over  beaten 
ocean  tracks,  quite  indifferent  to  the  exciting  day-dreams  of  fabulous  wealth 
concealed  in  the  bosom  of  the  western  continent,  which  so  dazzled  other 
people.  But  Holland,  too,  at  this  period  of  commercial  activity,  became  a 
partner  with  others  in  making  discoveries  and  settlements  in  America,  in 
spite  of  her  indifference.  The  story  with  its  preface  runs  thus : 

Upon  the  walls  of  the  governor’s  room  in  the  City  Hall,  New  York, 
hangs  a dingy  canvas  bearing  the  portrait  of  a man  apparently  about  forty 
years  of  age,  with  short-cut  hair  and  beard,  and  a broad  ruff,  such  as  were 
worn  by  the  English  gentry  late  in  the  reign  of  Queen  Elizabeth.  It  is  the 
portrait  of  Henry  Hudson,  “the  bold  Englishman,  the  expert  pilot,  and  the 
famous  navigator;”  a pupil,  probably  of  Drake,  or  Frobisher,  or  Grenville. 
Thoroughly  imbued  with  the  spirit  of  adventure  then  rife,  he  sought  oppor- 
tunities for  winning  renown  in  his  profession ; therefore  it  was  a happy  day 
for  Hudson,  early  in  the  year  1607,  when  in  its  morning  he  received  a sum- 
mons to  the  parlor  of  Sir  Thomas  Gresham,  a wealthy  London  merchant, 
who  built  the  Royal  Exchange.  There  he  met  a number  of  “ certain  wor- 


Chap.  XIII. 


EXPLORATIONS  BY  HENRY  HUDSON. 


165 


shipful  merchants  of  London  ” who  yet  believed  in  the  existence  of  a polar 
sea  passage  to  India,  and  had  conceived  a plan  for  another  search  for  it. 
They  had  sent  for  Hudson  to  join  them  in  consultation.  He  found  Sir 
Thomas  and  a number  of  friends  sitting  at  a table  covered  with  maps  and 
charts,  with  just  space  enough  besides  for  a rich  silver  salver  holding  bottles 
of  wine  and  glasses  to  drink  it.  He  was  received  graciously.  The  interview 
was  not  long,  and  it  ended  in  a bargain  between  Hudson  and  the  merchants 
for  the  navigator  to  command  a small  expedition  for  the  discovery  of  a polar 
sea  passage,  not  in  the  usual  track  in  the  northwestern  waters,  but  around 
the  north  of  Europe. 


Hudson  sailed  from  Gravesend  on  the  first  of  May,  1607,  a few  days  after 
an  English  colony  had  arrived  in  Virginia  to  plant  the  seeds  of  a great  com- 
monwealth there.  The  vessel  in  which  Hudson  sailed  was  a small  one 
manned  by  only  ten  men  and  a boy.  He  went  up  the  eastern  coast  of 
Greenland  to  the  eighteenth  degree,  where  a solid  ice  barrier  compelled  him 
to  turn  back.  He  had  discovered  the  island  of  Spitzbergen,  nothing  more. 
Baffled  but  not  discouraged,  he  returned  to  England  at  the  middle  of  Sep- 
tember. Neither  were  his  employers  disheartened.  They  fitted  out  another 
vessel  in  which  Hudson  sailed  late  in  April,  1608,  with  full  expectation  that 
he  should  make  the  coveted  passage  between  Spitzbergen  and  Nova  Zembla. 
Again  the  impenetrable  ice-pack  compelled  him  to  turn  back,  and  he  again 
returned  to  England.  He  was  not  yet  disheartened,  but  his  employers  were, 
and  gave  up  the  enterprise.  Hudson  w'ent  over  to  Holland  to  seek  similar 
employment  in  the  service  of  the  Dutch  East  India  Company,  a wealthy 
corporation  of  merchants  at  Amsterdam,  which  had  been  in  existence  about 
seven  vearc.  Hudson  inspired  them  with  a belief  that  a much  shorter  pas- 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  1. 


1 66 

sage  to  their  possessions  in  the  East  Indies  might  be  found  around  the 
North  of  Europe,  and  they  fitted  out  a small  vessel  of  ninety  tons,  to  go  in 
search  of  it.  Hudson  was  placed  in  command  of  her,  with  a choice  crew  of 
English  and  Dutch  seamen.  She  w'as  a staunch  new  vessel  named  Dc  Halvc- 
Macn — the  Half-Moon — and  in  her  he  left  the  Texel  early  in  April,  1609, 
and  sailed  for  Nova  Zembla. 

After  manfully  fighting  the  ice-pack  on  the  parallel  of  Spitzbergen,  and 
its  allies — the  polar  fogs  and  tempests — until  all  hope  of  conquests  vanished, 
Hudson  was  compelled,  a third  time,  to  turn  back.  He  determined  not  to 
go  without  fruit  to  the  Te.xel,  so  he  sailed  around  the  southern  shores  of 
Greenland  into  the  track  of  searchers  after  a northwest  passage.  Again  the 
ice-pack  foiled  him,  and  he  sailed  southward  until,  at  the  middle  of  July,  he 
discovered  the  American  continent  off  the  coast  of  Maine.  It  is  supposed 
that  he  passed  several  days  in  Casco  Bay,  repairing  his  storm-shattered  ves- 
sel, when  the  natives,  among  whom  he  found  French  trinkets,  treated  him 
kindly.  Their  hospitality  was  requited  by  plundering  their  property  and 
driving  them  from  their  houses.  They  resented  this  treatment  so  fiercely 
that  he  was  compelled  to  put  to  sea. 

Hudson  now  sailed  southward  as  far  as  the  Capes  of  Virginia,  touching 
at  Cape  Cod  on  the  way.  Then  he  sailed  up  the  coast,  discovered  Delaware 
Bay,  and  entered  the  harbor  of  New  York  early  in  September,  after  spending 
several  days  in  visiting  the  beautiful  shores  of  Raritan  Bay,  where  he  held 
friendly  intercourse  with  the  natives,  although  he  w^as  ever  watchful  for 
expected  treachery.  The  inhabitants  showed  a disposition  to  traffic,  but 
Hudson  was  so  suspicious  that  he  repelled  them  in  an  offensive  manner  and 
kindled  their  enmity.  One  night,  whilst  a boat  load  of  his  crew  were  return- 
ing from  an  exploration  in  the  neighborhood  of  the  Narrows  (between  Long 
and  Staten  Islands),  they  were  attacked  by  Indians,  in  canoes,  and  one  of 
the  seamen  was  killed.  Sadly  his  comrades  carried  his  body  ashore  the 
next  day  and  buried  it  near  the  beach,  while  savage  men,  women  and  chil- 
dren looked  on  in  wonder  from  a neighboring  hill. 

Northward  from  his  anchorage  after  his  vessel  had  entered  New  York 
Bay,  Hudson  saw'  a broad  stream  rising  and  falling  with  the  tide,  which  the 
Indians  told  him  came  from  beyond  the  pale  blue  mountain  ranges  in  the 
distance.  He  believed  it  was  a strait  through  which  he  might  pass  into  the 
Indian  Ocean ; so  he  sailed  up  the  stream  a few  miles,  and  anchored. 
Natives  came  to  him  in  canoes  from  the  shores  with  fruits  and  vegetables, 
and  friendly  gestures.  The  men  were  athletic  ; the  women  were  graceful 
and  the  young  ones  often  beautiful.  All  were  half-clad  in  mantles  made  of 
skins  or  feathers  depending  from  one  shoulder  and  the  wai.st,  or  in  colored 


Chap.  XIll. 


DISCOVERY  OF  THE  HUDSON  RIVER. 


167 


hempen  tunics ; and  some  of  the  women  who  came  in  the  canoes,  whose 
hair,  long  and  black,  hung  loosely  over  their  shoulders  and  bosoms,  wore 
fillets  ornamented  with  shells  and  the  quills  of  the  porcupine.  They  seemed 
anxious  for  friendly  intercourse,  but  Hudson  repelled  and  offended  them. 

The  Half-Moon  went  leisurely  up  the  river,  anchoring  here  and  there, 
whilst  her  commander  held  intercourse  with  the  natives,  sometimes  friendly, 
sometimes  hostile.  When  he  passed  the  great  mountains  which  he  had  seen 
in  the  distance,  and  found  the  water  freshening,  he  was  satisfied  that  he  was 
not  in  a passage  to  India.  It  was  only  a beautiful  river  flowing  down  from 
more  lofty  hills  three  hundred  miles  from  the  sea,  and  called  Mahicannituck 
by  the  natives.  The  Dutch  afterwards  called  it  the  Mauritius,  and  the  Eng- 
lish gave  it  the  name  of  Hudson’s  River. 


THE  HALF-MOON. 


Hudson  went  up  the  stream  with  the  Half -Moon  and  his  small  boats  as 
far  as  Albany,  and  perhaps  to  the  mouth  of  the  Mohawk,  and  looked  upon 
the  foaming  falls  of  Cohoes.  Then  he  sailed  leisurely  back,  everywhere 
charmed  with  the  beauty  and  grandeur  of  the  scenery  and  apparent  fertility 
of  the  soil.  He  had  discovered  one  of  the  richest  portions  of  America. 
From  New  York  Bay  he  sailed  for  England,  after  formally  taking  possession 
of  the  whole  domain  which  he  had  discovered  in  the  name  of  the  States- 
General  of  Holland.  Landing  at  Dartmouth  in  November,  he  hastened  to 
London  and  told  the  story  of  his  discoveries.  The  unworthy  monarch  on 
England’s  throne,  jealous  of  the  advantages  which  the  Dutch  might  derive 
from  these  discoveries,  would  not  let  Hudson,  an  English  subject,  leave  the 
12 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  I. 


1 68 

realm.  The  navigator  had  outwitted  the  sovereign.  Knowing  his  mean 
character,  he  had  sent  to  his  Amsterdam  employers,  by  a trusty  hand,  all  of 
his  log-books,  maps,  charts,  and  a full  account  of  his  voyage  and  discoveries. 
These  led  to  the  commercial  ventures  between  the  Texel  and  the  Hudson 
rivers  which  immediately  followed,  and  which  resulted  in  the  planting  of  the 
City  of  New  Amsterdam  (now  New  York)  at  the  mouth  of  the  latter,  and  of 
New  Orange  (now  Albany)  at  near  the  head  of  its  navigable  waters.  These 
were  the  germs  of  the  commonwealth  of  New  Netherland,  the  domain  of 
which  is  now  known  as  the  State  of  New  York. 

The  fate  of  Hudson,  the  last  of  the  discoverers  who  revealed  the  Atlantic 
coast  of  the  American  continent  to  Europe,  may  be  told  in  a few  words. 
He  sailed  from  England  in  the  spring  of  i6io  on  his  fourth  voyage  in  search 
of  a polar  ocean  passage,  this  time  in  the  northwest.  He  discovered,  far  up 
North  America,  the  Bay  that  bears  his  name,  and  intended  to  winter  there, 
but  a majority  of  his  crew  became  mutinous  and  compelled  him  to  sail 
homeward.  On  the  way  he,  his  son  and  seven  of  his  men  who  had  remained 
faithful  to  him  were  seized,  pinioned,  placed  in  an  open  shallop  and  aban- 
doned on  the  icy  sea,  where,  of  course,  they  soon  perished.  Abacuck 
Pricket,  one  of  Hudson’s  crew,  who  was  confined  to  the  cabin  with  lameness 
at  the  time,  in  his  published  account  of  the  circumstances,  after  relating  how 
he  opposed  the  cruel  proceedings,  says:  “ Now  were  all  the  poore  men  in 
the  shallop,  whose  names  are  as  followeth : Hcnric  Hudson,  John  Hudson, 
Arnold  Lodlo,  Sidrack  Fancr,  Phillip  Staffe,  Thomas  Woodhouse  or  Wydhouse, 
Adam  Moore,  Henrie  King,  Michael  Bute.  The  carpenter  got  of  them  a 
Peece,  and  Powder,  and  Shot,  and  some  Pikes,  an  Iron  Pot,  with  some  meale 
and  other  things.  They  stood  out  of  the  Ice,  the  Shallop  being  fast  to  the 
Sterne  of  the  Ship,  and  so  (when  they  were  nigh  out,  for  I cannot  say  they 
were  cleane  out)  they  cut  her  head  fast  from  the  Sterne  of  our  Ship,  then 
out  with  there  Top-sayles,  and  toward  the  East  they  stood,  in  a cleare 
Sea.” 


END  OF  BOOK  I. 


BOOK  II. 


SETTLEMENTS 


FROM  1606  TO  1733. 


CHAPTER  I 


ENGLAND  AT  THE  BEGINNING  OF  THE  SEVENTEENTH  CENTURY — HENRY  THE  EIGHTH  AND  THE 
CHURCH — DAWN  OF  THE  AGE  OF  REASON — RURAL  POPULATION  OF  ENGLAND — FURNITURE, 
COSTUME,  METHODS  OF  AGRICULTURE,  LEARNING  AND  FINE  ARTS  IN  ENGLAND — LONDON 
AND  PLYMOUTH  COMPANIES — SETTLEMENTS  ATTEMPTED  IN  NEW  ENGLAND — ENGLISH  SETTLERS 
ON  THE  JAMES  RIVER — CAPTAIN  JOHN  SMITH — SETTLEMENT  AT  JAMESTOWN. 


T the  beginning  of  the  seventeenth  century,  when 
permanent  English  settlements  were  begun  in 
America,  the  people  of  Great  Britain  had  just 
passed  from  the  reign  of  an  age  of  Faith  into  that 
of  an  age  of  Reason.  In  the  realm  of  the  former, 
there  was  such  absolute  intellectual  laziness, 
and  indifference  to  the  exercise  of  reason 
in  speculative  matters,  that  men 
accepted  tenets  in  religion  and 
politics,  however  absurd, 
as  truths,  and  bestowed 
no  thought  upon  them. 


1/2 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  II. 


Theology  was  like  a cast-iron  machine,  utterly  inflexible.  It  fashioned 
social  life  in  its  most  minute  details.  The  people  were  simply  passive 
portions  of  that  machine  obedient  to  its  ecclesiastic  movers.  The  monastery 
governed  the  throne  and  its  subjects  as  a rigid  master,  and  for  centuries 
there  had  been  very  little  improvement  in  the  condition  of  the  inhabitants. 
At  length  the  glare  of  the  moral  volcano  which  had  suddenly  burst  out  in 
Germany  shot  across  Western  Europe  and  the  English  Channel  and  awoke 
the  British  mind  from  its  sluggish  repose.  Faith  gave  way  to  Reason.  A 
secular  revolt  assumed  formidable  proportions,  and  at  the  close  of  the  same 
year,  when  the  right  of  private  judgment  was  proclaimed  at  Spires,  the  Eng- 
lish House  of  Commons — the  representatives  of  the  people — presented  a 
petition  to  King  Henry  the  Eighth,  which  contained  the  germs  of  the  Eng- 
lish reformation.  It  accused  the  clergy  of  disloyalty  and  immorality,  and 
attributed  the  disorders  which  affected  the  realm  to  the  malign  influence  of 
the  ecclesiastics.  The  king  presented  this  petition  to  the  bishops  for  an 
answer.  That  answer  was  arrogant,  and  offensive  to  the  House  of  Com- 
mons. The  latter  stood  firm  in  the  position  of  accuser  and  champion  for 
the  laity,  and  waged  a bitter  war  with  the  clergy.  Henry,  stimulated  by  his 
love  for  Anne  Boleyn  and  angered  by  the  opposition  of  the  church  to  his 
unholy  scheme  of  divorcement  from  his  queen,  united  with  the  Commons, 
and  employed  the  resolute  Thomas  Cromwell  to  lead  a movement  for  the 
disseverance  of  the  civil  government  of  England  from  the  controlling  spirit- 
ual power  of  Rome.  Cromwell  did  so,  with  a high  hand,  sanctioned  and 
assisted  by  the  Parliament,  for  already  the  rule  of  the  people  through  repre- 
sentatives was  recognized.  That  body,  by  law,  suppressed  all  the  monas- 
teries in  the  kingdom,  confiscated  their  property,  and  compelled  the  ecclesi- 
astics to  work  for  their  own  sustenance.  “ Go  spin,  jades  ; go  spin  !”  was  the 
unfeeling  remark  of  Cromwell  to  some  aged  nuns.  By  law,  Henry  was  made 
the  supreme  head  of  the  church  in  England — a pontiff  of  a church  in  rebel- 
lion— and  so  was  established  the  principle  that  canon  or  ecclesiastical  laws 
must  be  subservient  to  the  civil  laws.  It  was  a new  thing  under  the  sun. 

England  was  now  partially  freed  from  a long  political  bondage,  and  the 
age  of  Reason  dawned.  The  English  mind  was  thoroughly  aroused  to 
action.  Wonderful  social  changes  followed ; and  during  the  reign  of  the 
adroit  trimmer  Queen  Elizabeth,  all  classes  had  more  freedom  than  ever 
before.  Yet  the  laity  were  not  wholly  free.  Henry  had  not  specially 
changed  the  theology  or  the-  rituals  of  the  church  in  England,  and  there 
appeared  three  powerful  and  antagonistic  parties  in  the  realm.  These  were 
the  English  party,  or  Churchmen,  who  adhered  to  and  enforced  the  doctrines 
and  rituals  of  the  Church  of  Rome,  but  who  gave  their  allegiance  to  the 


Chap.  I. 


SOCIAL  LIFE  IN  ENGLAND. 


173 


English  monarch,  and  not  to  the  Pope ; the  papal  party  or  supporters  of  the 
authority  of  the  Roman  hierarchy,  and  the  doctrinal  Protestants  who  were 
disliked  by  the  others.  When  Parliament  established  a liturgy  for  the 
Church  of  England,  the  latter  refused  conformity  to  it,  for  they  acknowl- 
edged no  authority  but  the  Bible  in  matters  of  religion.  They  were  more 
austere  in  manners,  more  simple  in  their  worship,  and  demanded  greater 
purity  of  life,  and  so  they  acquired  the  name  of  Puritans.  It  was  given  in 
derision,  but  soon  became  an  honorable  title.  Each  class  was  intolerant, 
and  for  more  than  a century  and  a half,  there  was  a chronic  triangular  con- 
test between  the  English  Churchmen,  the  Roman  Catholics,  and  the  Puri- 
tans, which  caused  many  of  each  class  ^ to  seek  peace  in  the  forests  of 
America.  But  Reason  swayed  the  age  with  a potent  sceptre,  and  stamped 
its  insignia  of  authority  upon  the  movements  of  society.  Individuals  and 
associations  found  new  and  promising  fields  of  action,  the  most  attractive  of 
which  was  the  virgin  soil  of  America.  As  we  have  seen,  its  worth  was 
known  and  fairly  estimated  at  the  beginning  of  the  seventeenth  century ; 
and  then  dawned  the  Era  of  Settlements  within  the  domain  of  our  Republic, 
now  at  the  noon-tide  of  success,  and  turning  the  wilderness,  everywhere, 
into  a blooming  garden. 

The  condition  of  the  rural  population  of  England  had  greatly  improved 
under  the  new  order  of  things.  Down  to  the  time  of  Henry  the  Eighth, 
there  had  been  very  little  improvement  since  the  Romans  left  the  island. 
There  was  not  much  tillage,  and  that  little  was  unskillfully  done.  Vast 
forests  and  fens  covered  the  land,  and  malaria  (unwholesome  exhalations) 
was  a perpetual  scourge.  The  population  was  sparse  and  increased  very 
slowly.  It  did  not  exceed  five  million  in  the  whole  island  of  Great  Britain, 
when  Henry  the  Eighth  ascended  the  throne.  The  food  of  the  common 
people  was  not  equal  in  its  nutrition  and  variety,  nor  their  clothing  in  com- 
fort, to  that  of  our  Indians  when  Europeans  first  came  to  America.  Our 
savages  lived  in  better  habitations  than  did  their  British  cotemporaries. 
Pestilence  and  famine  kept  the  rural  population  sparse.  The  ecclesiastics 
rioted  in  coarse  luxuries,  and  the  morals  of  the  towns  were  beastly  in  the 
extreme. 

At  the  beginning  of  the  seventeenth  century,  or  a hundred  years  later, 
all  this  had  materially  changed.  The  methods  of  agriculture  had  been 
greatly  improved,  and  its  bounds  immensely  enlarged.  Implements  were 
better  and  tillage  was  far  more  productive.  The  farmers,  generally,  had  an 
abundance  of  good  food  ; lived  in  better  houses ; pewter  dishes  had  taken 
the  place  of  wooden  ones ; feather  beds,  those  of  straw  and  coarse  wool,  and 
the  yeoman  was  fond  of  entertaining  his  neighbors.  Clover  had  been  intro- 


174 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  II. 


duced  from  the  Netherlands,  and  increased  the  food  for  sheep  and  cattle. 
Gardens  had  begun  to  be  cultivated.  From  the  Netherlands  had  come  the 
hop ; also  the  cabbage,  lettuce,  apricot,  gooseberry,  musk-melon  and  apple. 
Cherries  had  come  from  France;  currants  from  Greece,  and  plums  from 
Italy ; and  from  Flanders  the  Flemmings  had  brought  the  rose  and  other 
fragrant  plants,  natives  of  the  East.  Rural  feasts  were  common  among  the 
yeomanry,  and  the  materials  for  good  cheer  are  enumerated  in  the  following 
lines : 

“ Goqd  bread  and  good  drink,  a good  fire  in  the  hall  ; 

Braun,  pudding  and  sauce,  and  good  mustard  withal  ; 

Beef,  mutton  and  pork,  shred  pies  of  the  best  ; 

Pig,  veal,  goose  and  capon,  and  turke)'  well  drest ; 

Cheese,  apples  and  nuts  ; jolly  carols  to  hear  ; 

All  these  in  the  country  are  counted  good  cheer.” 

In  cities  and  among  the  nobility  rapidly  increasing  wealth  had  fostered 
a taste  for  luxuries.  Dwellings,  furniture,  and  dress,  felt  its  influence.  Ele- 
gant and  substantial  houses  were  built.  Furniture  was  elaborately  carved 
and  inlaid  ; glass  mirrors  had  been  introduced  from  France  early  in  the  reign 
of  Elizabeth,  and  carpets  from  Turkey,  which  English  weavers  soon  imitated, 
took  the  place  on  floors  of  rushes  and  mats  on  which  royalty  had  before 
trodden.  Chairs  were  cushioned  with  velvet  coverings,  and  costly  beds  and 
bedsteads  were  seen.  In  many  houses  were  ornamental  French  clocks,  and 
knives  were  seen  on  English  dinner-tables ; but  forks  were  not  used  whilst 
Elizabeth  lived. 

An  old  chronicler  tells  us  of  a merry  scene  in  the  palace  of  Henry  the 
Eighth.  On  the  morning  after  the  supple-kneed  Archbishop  Cranmer  pro- 
nounced the  marriage  of  his  king  with  Anne  Boleyn  lawful,  the  new  queen 
received  visits  of  congratulation  from  the  whole  court  and  the  archbishop 
and  several  prelates  in  full  canonicals.  Henry  was  delighted  with  the  honors 
paid  to  his  beautiful  wife,  and  whilst  they  were  pressing  about  her,  and  both 
ladies  and  gentlemen  were  giving  her  tokens  of  their  regard,  the  king  went 
to  a small  cabinet,  unlocked  it,  and  taking  from  it  a French  clock  which  he 
had  bought  in  France  while  he  was  there  with  Anne  when  she  was  a mar- 
chioness, he  brought  it  and  put  it  in  her  hands  as  a public  pledge  of  his  love 
and  constancy  whilst  time  should  endure.  It  was  of  “ silver  gilt,  richly 
chased,  engraved  and  ornamented  with  fleur-de-lys,  little  heads,  etc.  On 
the  top  sits  a lion  holding  the  arms  of  England,  which  are  also  on  their 
sides.”  It  was  about  sixteen  inches  in  height. 

The  costume  of  this  period  we  are  considering  was  a little  less  extrava- 
gant in  mode  and  richness  of  materials  than  it  had  been  when  Elizabeth  was 


Chap.  I. 


MANNERS  AND  CUSTOMS  IN  ENGLAND. 


175 


in  her  prime,  for  Puritan  simplicity  better  suited  good  taste.  Crimson  and 
blue  velvets  embroidered  with  gold  were  still  worn  by  the  rich  and  noble  ; 
and  the  ruff  was  yet  seen  around  the  necks  of  both  men  and  women,  but 
somewhat  diminished  in  volume.  Jewelry  was  yet  used  to  excess,  and  per- 
fumed gloves  bordered  with  silver  were  common  among  the  rich.  Head- 
dresses were  of  every  variety  of  pattern,  but  generally  were  not  offensive  to 
good  taste.  The  pastimes  of  the  common  people  were  ball-playing,  bowl- 
ing, archery  and  rude  theatrical  exhibitions,  whilst  the  gentry  engaged  in 
bull-baiting  and  horse-racing  out  of  doors,  and  chess  and  backgammon 
amused  them  in  hall  and  castle.  Learning,  until  late  in  Elizabeth’s  reign, 
had  been  much  neglected.  Nobles  and  clergy  were  ignorant ; but  now  a 


JAMES  THE  FIRST.  HENRY  THE  EIGHTH. 


mighty  impulse  had  been  given  to  literature  in  England,  for  it  was  the  age 
of  Spenser  and  Shakespeare.  Yet  not  one  in  ten  of  the  gentry  could  write 
his  or  her  name.  The  father  of  Shakespeare  could  only  make  his  mark  with 
a pen.  The  fine  arts  were  very  little  encouraged.  Henry  the  Eighth,  who 
possessed  good  taste,  caused  some  very  fine  buildings  to  be  erected,  and 
invited  to  his  court  painters  and  sculptors  from  abroad.  Holbein  the 
painter  came  from  Switzerland,  and  Torregiano  the  sculptor  came  from 
Florence.  But  Elizabeth  had  no  artistic  taste,  and  we  find  only  one  emi- 
nent English  painter  during  her  reign — Nicolas  Hilliard — to  whom  she  sat 
for  her  miniature  several  times.  She  encouraged  art  so  far  as  it  ministered 
to  the  gratification  of  her  vanity. 


176 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  II. 


Such,  in  brief  outline,  is  a picture  of  the  social  condition  of  England 
when  the  inhabitants  of  that  realm  began  to  make  permanent  settlements 
in  America,  at  the  beginning  of  the  seventeenth  century.  The  Tudor 
dynasty  had  ended  with  Elizabeth,  and  that  of  the  Stuarts  had  begun. 
James  the  Sixth  of  Scotland,  the  only  son  of  Mary  Queen  of  Scots,  had 
ascended  the  throne  as  James  the  First  of  England  in  1603.  He  was  in 
private  and  public  an  unwashed,  ill-mannered,  vulgar  and  contemptible  man ; 
fond  of  gross  shows  on  which  he  wasted  the  treasures  of  the  kingdom  ; and 
so  great  was  his  egotism  that  he  considered  himself  more  wise  and  learned 
than  any  man  in  his  realm  in  church  or  state.  He  was  a bigoted  believer  in 
the  royal  prerogative  or  exclusive  privileges  exercised  by  divine  right ; and 
he  was  a fickle  tyrant  who  gave  continual  uneasiness  to  his  subjects.  This 
was  the  monarch  who  granted  charters  to  the  London  and  Plymouth  Com- 
panies, authorizing  them  to  make  settlements  in  America. 

The  Plymouth  Company,  who  were  to  control  North  Virginia,  were  first 
in  the  field  of  adventure.  Circumstances  seemed  to  be  favorable.  England 
was  then  burdened  with  two  classes  of  men  who  would  be  willing  to  engage 
in  any  enterprise  which  might  promise  improvement  in  their  condition. 
These  were  restless  soldiers  unemployed  since  war  with  France  ceased,  and 
who  might  soon  become  dangerous  to  the  state ; and  impoverished  spend- 
thrifts, idle  and  often  vicious,  who  had  wasted  their  estates  in  riotous  living. 
Such  men  stood  ready  to  brave  ocean  perils  and  the  uncertainties  of  life  in  a 
distant  hemisphere ; and  when  the  corporators  asked  for  emigrants,  there 
was  no  lack  of  candidates. 

The  charter  of  each  company  was  the  same.  The  defined  boundaries  of 
each  domain  was  as  follows : that  of  the  London  Company,  between  the 
thirty-fourth  and  thirty-eighth  degrees  of  north  latitude,  and  that  of  the 
Plymouth  Company,  between  the  forty-first  and  forty-fifth  degrees,  leaving 
three  degrees  of  space  between  North  and  South  Virginia,  on  a breadth  of 
one  hundred  miles  of  which,  in  the  centre,  neither  party  should  be  allowed 
to  make  settlements. 

The  mind  of  the  king  was  visible  in  the  grant.  The  idea  of  the  royal 
prerogative  was  everywhere  conspicuous.  He  gave  to  the  colonists  nothing 
but  the  bare  territory  and  the  privilege  of  peopling  and  defending  it.  Abso- 
lute legislative  authority  was  reserved  to  the  monarch,  and  he  had  control 
over  all  appointments.  Supreme  jurisdiction,  under  the  monarch,  was  given 
to  a small  body  of  men  residing  in  England,  known  as  “ The  Council  of 
Virginia,”  and  local  administration  was  entrusted  to  a council  in  the  colony 
appointed  by  the  one  at  home,  the  term  of  office  of  the  members  of  both 
councils  depending  upon  the  caprice  of  the  king.  The  only  political  privi- 


Chap.  1. 


EMIGRATION  TO  NEW  ENGLAND. 


177 


lege  accorded  to  the  emigrants  was  that  of  perpetual  English  citizenship  for 
themselves  and  their  children.  Homage  and  rent  were  the  prime  conditions 
of  the  charter, — rent  in  the  form  of  one-fifth  of  the  net  produce  of  the  pre- 
cious metals.  The  charter  had  not  the  slightest  feature  of  a free  govern- 
ment ; for  to  the  emigrants  not  a single  elective  franchise,  or  a right  to  self- 
government,  was  conceded.  They  were  subject  to  the  ordinances  of  a com- 
mercial corporation  of  which  they  were  not  allowed  to  be  members ; and 
even  in  matters  of  religion,  they  had  no  choice.  The  doctrine  and  rituals 
of  the  Church  of  England  were  to  be  the  established  theology  and  mode  of 
worship  in  the  American  colonies,  and  no  dissent  was  allowed. 

The  principal  members  of  the  Plymouth  Company  were  Sir  John  Pop- 
ham  (then  Lord  Chief-Justice  of  England,  who  had  condemned  Raleigh  to 
death),  his  brother  George,  Sir  Fernando  Gorges,  Sir  John  and  Raleigh 
Gilbert,  sons  of  Sir  Humphrey  Gilbert  who  perished  in  the  Squirrel,  William 
Parker  and  Thomas  Hanham.  In  1606  they  sent  an  agent  in  a small  vessel 
to  inspect  the  American  domain.  The  Spaniards  seized  her.  Popham  fitted 
out  another  at  his  own  expense,  made  the  navigator  Martin  Pring  her  com- 
mander, and  sent  her  to  America  on  the  same  errand.  Pring  explored  the 
New  England  coasts,  and  confirmed  all  that  Gosnold  and  others  had  said 
about  the  beauty  of  the  country  and  the  fertility  of  the  soil.  This  report 
stimulated  Popham  (who  was  the  chief  manager  of  the  Plymouth  Company) 
to  energetic  efforts  towards  founding  a settlement,  and  at  the  beginning  of 
the  summer  of  1607,  a hundred  emigrants  sailed  for  America  in  three  small 
vessels,  with  George  Popham  as  their  governor.  They  landed  on  a rathei 
sterile  spot  on  the  coast  of  Maine,  near  the  mouth  of  the  Kennebec  River, 
late  in  August,  where  they  dug  a well  and  built  a store-house,  a few  log  huts 
and  a stockade  fort.  It  was  too  late  in  the  season  to  raise  food  from  the 
soil.  There  was  small  promise  of  receiving  any  from  the  Indians,  who, 
angered  by  the  kidnapping  by  Weymouth,  were  sullen  and  hostile.  With 
this  prospect  before  them,  all  but  forty-five  of  the  emigrants  returned  home 
in  the  ships. 

The  ensuing  winter  was  a fearful  one.  Frost  closed  the  rivers  against 
fishermen,  and  deep  snows  blocked  the  forests  against  hunters.  The  settlers 
had  nothing  to  depend  upon  excepting  the  stores  brought  from  England. 
At  one  time  their  huts  were  nearly  buried  in  the  snow-drifts.  Of  two  of 
them  only  the  chimneys  were  seen  above  the  snow  for  a month,  out  of  which 
rolled  the  blue  smoke  along  the  surface  of  the  white  drifts.  It  was  difficult 
to  get  fuel  to  feed  the  hut  fires,  and  they  were  about  to  make  the  store-house 
their  general  home,  when,  at  midnight  in  January,  it  took  fire  and  was  con- 
sumed, with  a part  of  their  provisions,  which  they  could  not  save.  That 


178 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  11. 


fire  produced  a wild,  weird  scene,  its  red  glare  spreading  a crimson  glow  far 
over  the  snow  and  through  the  dark  forests.  Distress  followed.  Confine- 
ment, hardship  and  scarcity  gendered  disease,  and  when  the  spring  of  1608 
opened.  Governor  Popham  was  dead. 

The  settlers  were  on  the  verge  of  despair  when  a ship  came  with  supplies 
and  brought  the  sad  intelligence  that  the  chief-justice  and  Sir  John  Gilbert 
were  dead.  These  men  were  the  stronger  props  of  the  enterprise.  This 
news,  with  the  terrible  scenes  of  the  past  winter  fresh  in  their  memories, 
discouraged  the  emigrants,  and  they  abandoned  the  country  and  returned 
home,  taking  with  them  a little  vessel  which  they  had  built,  and  some  furs 


settlers’  huts  buried  in  the  snow. 


and  other  products  of  the  country.  They  were  not  fit  men  to  found  a state. 
They  were  compulsory  emigrants  sent  hither  by  their  personal  necessities, 
and  had  left  their  country  for  their  country’s  good.  Happily  for  New  Eng- 
land they  were  not  allowed  to  be  the  founders  of  a commonwealth  on  its 
soil.  They  gave  such  discouraging  accounts  of  the  country  that  no  one 
seemed  willing  to  follow  their  example ; and  for  a number  of  years  afterward 
the  Plymouth  Company  only  kept  up  a little  traffic  with  the  natives  of  their 
domain,  and  fished  in  the  neighboring  waters. 

The  king,  with  commendable  vanity,  had  prepared  a code  of  laws  for  the 
colonies,  really  more  liberal  in  their  provisions  than  the  intentions  of  the 
patentees,  who  desired  immediate  profitable  return  in  money  rather  than  the 
ultimate  blessings  of  colonization.  These  laws  enjoined  the  regular  preach- 
ing of  the  gospel,  kindness  to  the  Indians  and  the  communication  of  relig- 
ious instruction  to  them,  and  other  provisions  for  the  well-ordering  of  a civil 
community.  Under  the  charter  and  this  code  of  laws,  the  London  Company 
prepared  to  make  a settlement  in  South  Virginia.  Sir  Thomas  Gates,  Sir 


Chap.  I. 


EMIGRATION  TO  VIRGINIA. 


179 


George  Somers,  Richard  Hakluyt,  and  Edward  Maria  Wingfield  were  its  most 
active  members,  and  in  December,  1606,  they  sent  Captain  Christopher  New- 
port with  three  small  vessels  and  one  hundred  and  five  emigrants,  with  orders 
to  land  on  Roanoke  Island,  where  Raleigh’s  colony  had  perished  twenty 
years  before.  It  was  a company  of  men  no  better  fitted  for  the  founding  of  a 
prosperous  state  than  were  those  who  wintered  on  the  coast  of  Maine.  No 
family,  the  true  nucleus  of  a colony,  accompanied  either.  Of  the  whole 
number  who  sailed  for  Virginia,  there  were  only  twelve  laborers  and  a few 
mechanics.  The  remainder  were  “ gentlemen,”  a word  denoting  persons 
who  were  not  engaged  in  any  industrial  employments — drones  in  society, 
whose  numbers  are,  happily,  small  in  our  country  at  this  day.  Many  of 
these  were  idle  and  dissolute,  whilst  a few  of  those  who  were  classed  with 
the  colonists,  like  Bartholomew  Gosnold,  the  projector  of  the  scheme. 
Captain  John  Smith,  George  Percy  brother  of  the  Duke  of  Northumber- 
land, and  Edward  Maria  Wingfield,  were  men  of  energy  and  steady  habits. 

The  silly  king,  with  his  love  for  concealment,  trickery  and  surprises,  had 
placed  the  names  of  the  councillors  for  the  Virginia  government  in  a sealed 
box,  with  orders  not  to  open  it  until  the  emigrants  should  be  landed  and 
were  prepared  to  form  a .settlement.  This  foolish  order  deprived  the  colo- 
nists of  a head  whilst  on  the  sea,  and  there  was  no  competent  authority  to 
decide  questions  or  to  quell  disputes,  if  any  should  arise,  during  the  long 
voyage  of  four  months,  for  Newport  took  the  old  southern  route  by  way  of 
the  Canary  Islands  and  the  West  Indies. 

Disputes,  hot  and  fierce,  did  arise  on  that  voyage.  Before  reaching  the 
Canaries  there  were  daily  quarrels,  chiefly  owing  to  the  brusque  and  impe- 
rious manner  and  outspoken  opinions  of  Captain  John  Smith,  who  possessed 
more  energy  and  wisdom  than  any  man  among  them.  Although  he  was 
then  only  twenty-nine  years  of  age,  he  had  acquired  vast  renown  and  expe- 
rience by  military  exploits,  and  his  fame  filled  his  companions  with  envy. 
He  had  been  a wild,  rollicking  lad,  whose  friends  gave  him  ten  shillings,  he 
said,  “ to  get  rid  of  him,”  and  he  went  to  France  as  a servant  to  an  English 
nobleman.  He  was  soon  dismissed  by  his  new  master,  and  then  engaged  in 
the  wars  in  the  Low  Countries.  At  the  end  of  a long  campaign,  when  he  was 
nineteen  years  of  age,  he  returned  to  England,  built  himself  a hut  in  a dark 
forest,  turned  hermit,  and  devoted  much  of  his  time  to  the  study  of  military 
history  and  tactics,  and  practising  horsemanship.  The  hermit  became  thC' 
theme  of  many  a wild  tale,  when  he  suddenly  disappeared.  Rudolph, 
Emperor  of  Germany,  was  then  waging  war  against  the  Turks,  who  were 
pressing  westward  through  Hungary.  Smith  resolved  to  join  the  Christian 
army  against  them.  After  various  vicissitudes  he  reached  Marseilles,  where 


i8o 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  II. 


he  embarked  for  Italy  in  a ship  filled  with  Roman  Catholic  pilgrims.  A 
terrible  storm  arose.  The  superstitious  pilgrims  believed  the  howling  tem- 
pest to  be  a token  of  God’s  anger  because  they  were  voyaging  with  a heretic  ; 
so  they  cast  the  young  Englishman  overboard.  He  swam  to  an  island  not 
far  off,  from  which  he  was  taken  in  a French  vessel  to  Alexandria,  and  after- 
ward on  a voyage  in  the  Levant,  where  they  fell  in  with  a Venetian  vessel 
richly  laden,  and  captured  her.  Soon  after  that.  Smith  joined  the  German 
army  then  fighting  the  Turks  in  Transylvania,  where  his  skill  and  prowess 
won  for  him  great  renown.  On  one  occasion,  whilst  besieging  a town,  a 
famous  leader  of  the  Mussulmans  challenged  any  Christian  to  single  combat 
for  the  amusement  of  the  ladies  of  the  city.  Smith  was  the  chosen  cham- 


CAPTAIN  SMITH'S  FIGHT  WITH  A TURK. 


pion.  The  Turkish  lord  appeared  in  the  arena  outside  the  walls  in  a suit  of 
glittering  mail.  On  his  shoulders  were  large  wings  made  of  eagle’s  feathers, 
garnished  with  gold  and  precious  stones.  Smith  appeared  in  a plain  suit  .of 
steel.  Both  were  on  horseback,  and  their  weapons  were  the  lances  of  the  old 
knights.  From  the  walls,  covered  with  ladies  and  soldiers,  and  from  the 
Christian  camp,  went  up  loud  shouts  as  the  combatants  approached  each 
other.  The  tilt  was  fierce.  By  a skillful  movement.  Smith  thrust  his  spear- 


Chap,  I. 


CAPTAIN  JOHN  SMITH. 


I8l 


point  into  the  helmet  of  his  antagonist,  and  pierced  his  brain.  The  Turk 
fell  dead,  when  his  head  was  cut  off  and  sent  to  the  Christian  camp.  Two 
other  champions,  who  fought  Smith  to  avenge  the  death  of  their  leader, 
shared  the  same  fate.  The  Prince  of  Transylvania  gave  him  a patent  of 
nobility  and  a coat-of-arms  composed  of  a shield  bearing  three  Turks’  heads 
in  two  of  the  quarterings. 

A little  later  Smith  was  made  a prisoner  and  sold  to  a Pacha,  who  sent 
him  to  Constantinople  as  a slave  for  his  mistress,  whom  that  officer  wished  to 
marry.  The  gallant  Christian,  then  in  the  bloom  of  young  manhood,  won 
the  heart  of  the  Turkish  maiden,  to  whom,  like  the  Moor,  he  told  the  story 
of  his  adventures.  She  tried  to  release  him  by  sending  him  to  her  brother 
in  the  Crimea,  but  he  there  experienced  the  most  grinding  slavery.  At 
length  he  escaped  in  the  garb  of  his  master  whom  he  slew  in  anger,  and 
after  many  stirring  adventures  on  the,  continent  he  returned  to  England  in 
1604.  Gosnold  easily  persuaded  him  to  go  to  Virginia,  where  he  became  the 
real  founder  of  that  State. 

After  sharp  quarrels  on  shipboard,  Wingfield,  who  was  a member  of  the 
London  Company,  accused  Smith  of  a conspiracy  to  murder  the  council, 
whoever  they  might  be,  usurp  the  government,  and  make  himself  king  of 
Virginia.  This  absurd  charge  was  believed  by  some,  and  the  brave  soldier 
was  imprisoned  during  the  remainder  of  the  voyage,  which  was  very  tedious. 
Whilst  running  up  the  American  coast  from  the  West  Indies,  they  encoun- 
tered a fierce  storm  which  drove  them  far  beyond  Roanoke  Island  into 
Chesapeake  Bay,  the  headlands  of  which  they  named  in  honor  of  the  Prince 
of  Wales  and  his  next  oldest  brother.  Cape  Henry  and  Cape  Charles. 

A part  of  the  voyagers  landed  on  Cape  Henry,  and  had  a slight  skirmish 
with  the  Indians ; and  that  night  the  sealed  box  was  opened,  when  the  com- 
pany were  astonished  to  find  the  name  of  Captain  Smith  amongst  those  of 
the  seven  councillors.  Yet  he  was  not  then  released.  They  sailed  across  the 
deep  waters  at  the  mouth  of  the  Chesapeake  the  next  day,  and  landed  upon 
a point  grandly  wooded  and  fragrant  with  the  perfumes  of  flowers.  Delicious 
was  the  comfort  and  rest  of  the  wearied  company  in  this  paradise  of  beauty 
and  repose,  and  with  gratitude  therefor  they  named  it  Point  Comfort.  There 
Fortress  Monroe  now  stands.  After  resting  a day  or  two,  they  entered  the 
mouth  of  a broad  river  which  the  Indians  called  Powhatan,  and  sailing  up 
that  yellow  stream  for  forty  or  fifty  miles,  they  chose  a place  for  a settle- 
ment on  an  island  close  by  the  northern  shore  of  the  river.  There  they 
organized  government  at  the  middle  of  May,  by  choosing  Wingfield  to  pre- 
side over  the  council.  In  honor  of  their  king  they  named  the  great  river 
James,  and  resolved  to  call  the  island  and  the  seat  of  government  James- 


OUR  COUNTRV. 


Book  II. 


182 

town.  The  Rev.  Robert  Hunt,  who  was  their  chaplain,  preached  a sermon 
and  invoked  the  blessings  of  God  upon  the  undertaking.  In  that  beautiful 
month  of  May,  warm  and  sunny  as  in  England  at  that  season,  the  air  laden 
with  the  perfume  of  wild  flowers,  and  the  children  of  the  forest,  friendly  and 
kind,  looking  on  in  wonder,  the  sound  of  the  metal  axe  was  first  heard  in 
Virginia.  The  first  tree  was  felled  and  the  first  foundation  was  laid  for  a 
dwelling  on  that  charming  spot  where  the  first  permanent  English  settlement 
in  America  was  planted. 

The  English  were  told  that  far  up  the  river  lived  Powhatan,  the  emperor 
of  several  confederated  tribes ; so,  whilst  the  carpenters  were  hewing  the 
timbers  for  the  cabins,  Newport,  Smith,  and  twenty  others  went  up  the 
stream  in  boats  to  discover  its  head  and  to  visit  the  dusky  monarch.  They 
followed  its  winding  course  to  the  Falls,  where  Richmond  now  stands ; and 
on  a hill,  a mile  below,  they  found  Powhatan  at  one  of  his  imperial  resi- 
dences, a large  structure  made  of  saplings  and  boughs  and  covered  with 
skins.  It  was  surrounded  by  a dozen  wigwams  of  his  chief  counsellors,  and 
fields  of  Indian  corn  almost  ready  to  burst  into  bloom.  The  emperor 
received  them  kindly,  but  his  chiefs  murmured  because  of  the  intrusion  of 
the  English.  Powhatan,  who  was  afraid,  said  : “ They  hurt  you  not ; they 
only  take  a little  waste  land.” 

Meanwhile,  matters  had  not  gone  smoothly  at  Jamestown.  The  jealous 
and  suspicious  Wingfield  restrained  exercise  with  fire-arms  and  discouraged 
the  building  of  a fort  which  Smith  had  recommended,  for  the  latter  knew 
that  the  idle  and  dissolute  men  of  the  company  would  soon  make  the 
Indians  their  enemies.  When-he  returned  his  fears  had  been  realized.  The 
Indians  had  made  a sharp  attack  upon  the  settlers,  wounding  several 
and  killing  a boy.  Then  the  president  consented  to  the  building  of  a 
stockade,  but  daily  and  nightly  watchings  were  necessary  to  avoid  another 
surprise. 

Newport  now  prepared  to  return  to  England  with  the  ships.  Smith  had 
not  been  allowed  to  take  his  seat  in  the  council,  for  he  had  not  been  tried 
nor  had  the  charges  against  him  been  withdrawn.  The  jealous  Wingfield, 
wishing  to  get  rid  of  him,  proposed  that  he  should  return  with  Newport  and 
so  avoid  the  disgrace  of  a trial.  The  indignant  soldier  rejected  the  proposal 
with  scorn,  and  demanded  an  immediate  trial.  Smith’s  innocence  was  so 
plain  to  the  comprehension  of  his  companions,  and  his  services  were  so  much 
needed,  that  they  demanded  his  release.  Wingfield  withdrew  his  charges 
and  Smith  took  his  seat  in  the  council,  when  it  was  adjudged  by  that  body 
that  the  president  should  pay  him  £200  damages  for  false  imprisonment. 
All  of  the  property  Wingfield  had  with  him  was  seized  to  satisfy  this  award. 


Chap.  I. 


SUFFERING  EMIGRANTS  IN  VIRGINIA. 


183 


when  Smith  generously  “ returned  it  to  the  store  for  the  general  use  of  the 
colony.”  From  that  time  Captain  Smith  was  the  ruling  spirit  in  Virginia. 

At  the  middle  of  June,  Newport  departed  for  England  for  more  emigrants 
and  supplies,  leaving  a pinnace  for  the  use  of  the  settlers.  Already  the  pru- 
dent thinkers  had  discovered  impending  perils.  Much  of  their  food  had 
been  spoiled  during  the  long  voyage,  and  the  hostile  Indians  withheld  sup- 
plies. “Our  drink,”  wrote  one  of  them,  “was  unwholesome  water;  our 
lodgings,  castles  in  the  air ; had  we  been  as  free  from  all  sins  as  from  glut- 
tony and  drunkenness,  we  might  have  been  canonized  for  saints.”  Most  of 
the  emigrants  were  too  idle  or  too  ignorant  to  make  efforts  to  till  the  soil. 
The  heat  soon  became  intense  and  brought  deadly  malaria  from  the  dank 
swamps  all  around  them,  that  prostrated  them  with  fevers  and  dysentery. 
Within  a fortnight  after  Newport  left  hardly  ten  of  them  were  able  to  stand, 
and  before  the  beginning  of  autumn  one-half  of  the  emigrants  were  under- 
ground. Among  the  victims  was  the  good  Gosnold,  a man  of  great  worth, 
to  whose  example  and  the  precepts  of  Parson  Hunt  the  settlers  were 
indebted  for  the  little  order  that  prevailed  among  them.  Despair  clouded 
the  minds  of  the  survivors,  and  in  the  midst  of  their  distress,  they  discov- 
ered that  the  avaricious  and  unscrupulous  Wingfield  was  living  on  choice 
stores  and  was  preparing  to  abandon  the  settlement  and  escape  to  the  West 
Indies  in  the  pinnace.  He  was  deprived  of  his  office,  and  Captain  John 
Ratcliffe,  a man  much  weaker  in  mind  and  equally  wicked,  was  put  in  his 
place.  The  settlers  soon  perceived  their  mistake,  and  taking  the  reins  of 
government  out  of  Ratcliffe’s  hands,  they  placed  them  in  those  of  Captain 
Smith.  It  was  an  event  that  saved  the  colony  from  ruin.  Hopeful,  cheer- 
ful, energetic,  honest,  full  of  invention  and  equal  to  any  emergency.  Smith’s 
words  and  example  diffused  light  amid  the  general  gloom  and  revived  the 
spirits  of  the  most  desponding.  He  soon  brought  order  out  of  confusion ; 
inspired  the  Indians  with  awe  and  compelled  them  to  bring  him  food.  And 
so  the  settlers  lived  until  the  wild-fowl,  returning  from  the  northern  waters, 
swarmed  upon  the  bosom  of  the  James  in  October,  and  at  the  beginning  of 
November  an  abundant  crop  of  Indian  corn  had  been  gathered  by  the 
savages,  who  shared  it  with  their  dependent  white  neighbors. 


13 


CHAPTER  II. 


ENERGY  AND  WISDOM  OF  CAPTAIN  SMITH — HIS  ENCOUNTER  WITH  INDIANS — SAVED  FROM  DEATH 
BY  POCAHONTAS— HIS  INFLUENCE  AT  JAMESTOWN,  AND  HIS  EXPLORATIONS — DEMANDS  OF 
THE  COMPANY — SMITH’S  RULE — CHANGE  IN  THE  GOVERNMENT — PERILOUS  PASSAGE  OF  A GOV- 
ERNOR AND  COMMISSIONERS — VALUABLE  EMIGRANTS — POCAHONTAS  SAVES  JAMESTOWN — THE 
‘ STARVING  TIME  ” — ABANDONMENT  OF  AND  RETURN  TO  JAMESTOWN — LORD  DELAWARE’S 
ADMINISTRATION — A BETTER  SOCIAL  SYSTEM — POCAHONTAS  KIDNAPPED — HER  BAPTISM  AND 
MARRIAGE — FRIENDSHIP  OF  THE  INDIANS — THE  STAPLE  OF  VIRGINIA — REPRESENTATIVE  GOV- 
ERNMENT ESTABLISHED. 

The  skill,  prowess,  and  forethought  of  Captain  Smith,  had  secured 
for  the  settlers  an  abundance  of  food  and  comfortable  dwellings  for 
the  winter.  The  sickly  season  was  over  early  in  November,  and 
nothing  but  fear  of  Indian  treachery  made  the  emigrants  uneasy  until  their 
improvidence  had  again  impoverished  their  stores.  Smith  had  voyaged 
down  the  James  River  to  Point  Comfort  and  back,  making  observations  of 
the  people  and  country,  and  impressing  the  former  with  a sense  of  the  wis- 
dom and  strength  of  the  English ; and  he  cow  proposed  to  explore  the 
Chickahominy  River,  a broad  stream  at  its  mouth  and  flowing  into  the 
James  from  the  northwest. 

With  singular  ignorance  of  the  progress  of  geographical  discovery,  and 
with  intense  greed  for  the  wealth  of  India,  the  Company  had  given  special 
instructions  to  the  settlers  to  explore  every  considerable  stream  which  they 
should  find  flowing  from  the  northwest,  hoping  so  to  discover  a passage  to 
the  Indian  Ocean  and  coveted  Cathay.  Smith  did  not  share  the  ignorance 
of  his  employers,  but  he  gladly  made  their  instructions  his  warrant  for 
exploring  the  surrounding  country ; so,  with  half  a dozen  followers,  he  went 
up  the  Chickahominy  in  an  open  boat  to  its  shallow  waters  among  the 
swamps  high  upon  the  Virginia  peninsula.  There,  with  two  others  and  two 
Indian  guides,  he  penetrated  the  dark  and  tangled  forests,  leaving  the 
remainder  of  his  company  in  charge  of  the  vessel  with  instructions  not  to 
go  on  shore.  They  disobeyed,  and  one  of  them  was  killed  by  prowling  sav- 
ages. Meanwhile,  Smith  had  gone  twenty-miles  further  in  a canoe,  when  he 
left  his  two  companions  and  with  one  guide  he  went  into  the  woods  in 


Chap.  II. 


CAPTAIN  SMITH  MADE  CAPTIVE. 


185 


search  of  game.  The  savages,  under  Opechancanough,  the  king  of  Pamun- 
key,  had  watched  the  movements  of  the  Englishmen.  They  slew  the  two  men 
in  charge  of  the  canoe,  and  then  sought  their  leader.  Smith,  seeing  a large 
number  of  assailants,  tied  his  Indian  guide  to  his  own  body  with  his  long 
garters,  and  making  him  a buckler  he  fought  valiantly  and  slew  several  of 
the  savages,  as  he  moved  backward  toward  his  canoe.  Falling  into  a quag- 
mire, after  being  slightly  wounded,  he  was  made  prisoner.  Death  would 
doubtless  have  been  his  immediate  fate  but  for  his  presence  of  mind  and 


CAPTAIN  smith’s  ENCOUNTER  WITH  THE  INDIANS. 


quickness  of  thought.  He  drew  from  his  pocket  a compass,  and  explained 
to  the  king  its  wonderful  nature  as  well  as  signs  could  convey  the  forms  of 
thought.  In  the  same  way  he  told  them  of  the  shape  of  the  earth  ; of  the 
nature  of  the  sun,  moon  and  stars,  and  “ how  the  sunne  chased  the  night 
round  about  the  world  continually.”  The  savages  were  at  once  impressed 
with  the  idea  that  he  was  a superior  being,  and  they  regarded  him  with 
wonder  and  awe. 

The  white  captive  was  now  conducted  from  village  to  village  in  great 
state,  where  the  women  and  children  stared  at  him  in  mute  astonishment. 
In  their  march  the  king  was  just  behind  a file  of  warriors,  and  was  followed 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  II. 


1 86 

by  the  prisoner  whose  arms  were  held  by  two  huge  savages,  having  six  war- 
riors, all  painted  and  plumed  in  a gorgeous  manner,  on  each  side  of  them. 
At  the  capital  of  Opechancanough,  who  was  an  elder  brother  of  Powhatan, 
they  held  incantations  for  three  days  to  discover  his  character,  for  they  were 
in  doubts  whether  Smith  was  the  embodiment  of  a good  or  an  evil  spirit. 
Then  they  conducted  him  to  the  presence  of  the  Emperor  Powhatan,  at  a 
place  now  known  as  Shelly,  on  the  banks  of  the  York  River,  in  Gloucester 
county,  Virginia,  and  asked  him  to  decide  the  fate  of  the  prisoner.  There 
Smith  obtained  permission  to  send*  a letter  to  Jamestown,  in  which  he 
informed  the  settlers  of  his  condition,  and  directed  them  to  impress  the 
messengers  with  as  much  fear  of  the  English  as  possible.  The  marvellous 
power  of  that  letter  perplexed  the  Indians.  It  had  intelligent  force,  and 
more  than  ever  they  were  in  doubt  concerning  the  real  character  of  their 
captive,  who  was  now  feasted  in  a manner  which  made  him  think  he  was 
intended  as  food  for  a banquet  when  he  should  be  well  fatted. 

Smith  was  finally  brought  before  the  emperor  at  a great  council  of  full 
two  hundred  warriors.  Powhatan,  wearing  a mantle  of  raccoon  skins,  and  a 
head-dress  of  eagle’s  feathers,  sat  on  a raised  framework  with  a maiden  on 
each  side  of  him,  before  a fire.  From  this  throne  to  the  other  end  of  the 
long  house  neatly  made  of  boughs,  the  warriors  stood  in  two  rows,  in  their 
gayest  attire,  and  back  of  them  as  many  women  with  their  necks  and  shoul- 
ders painted  red,  their  heads  covered  with  the  white  down  of  birds,  and  strings 
of  white  beads  falling  over  their  bosoms.  When  the  captive  was  brought  in, 
they  all  shouted.  The  Queen  of  Appomattox  brought  him  water  that  he 
might  wash  his  hands,  and  another  woman  brought  him  a bunch  of  feathers 
wherewith  he  might  dry  them.  After  this  he  was  feasted,  and  then  a solemn 
council  was  held.  By  that  council  he  was  doomed  to  die.  Two  huge  stones 
were  brought  before  the  emperor,  to  which  the  prisoner  was  dragged  and  his 
head  laid  upon  them,  whilst  two  big  savages  stood  by  with  clubs  ready  to 
beat  out  his  brains.  Matoa  or  Pocahontas,  a young  daughter  of  the  emperor, 
begged  for  the  life  of  the  Captain,  but  in  vain,  when,  just  as  the  clubs  were 
uplifted,  she  darted  from  her  father’s  knee,  clasped  the  prisoner’s  head  with 
her  arms  and  laid  her  own  head  upon  his. 

“ How  could  that  stern  old  king  deny 
The  angel  pleading  in  her  eye? 

How  mock  the  sweet,  imploring  grace 
That  breathed  in  beauty  from  her  face, 

And  to  her  kneeling  action  gave 
A power  to  soothe  and  still  subdue. 

Until,  though  humbled  as  a slave, 

To  more  than  queenly  sway  she  grew.” — SiMMS. 


Chap.  II. 


PUBLIC  WORSPIIP  AT  JAMESTOWN. 


187 


The  emperor  yielded  to  the  maid,  and  consented  to  spare  the  life  of  the 
captive  that  he  might  make  hatchets  for  his  majesty,  and  bells  and  rattles, 
beads  and  copper  ornaments  for  his  daughter,  his  favorite  child.  He  did 
more;  he  released  Captain  Smith,  sent  him  with  an  escort  of  a dozen  men  to 
Jamestown,  and  he  and  his  people  promised  to  be  fast  friends  of  the  English. 
But  for  the  energy  and  wisdom  of  Captain  Smith  and  the  tender  compassion 
of  an  Indian  maiden,  the  settlers  at  Jamestown  would  have  all  been  mur- 
dered or  dispersed.  They  had  been  reduced  to  forty  persons,  and  when 
Smith  returned  he  found  the  stronger  ones  on  the  point  of  abandoning  the 
place  and  escaping  in  the  pinnace.  By  his  personal  courage  and  moral  force 
he  compelled  them  to  desist,  and  so,  again,  he  saved  the  budding  colony 
from  ruin.  These  men,  conscious  of  the  purity  of  Captain  Smith  and  of 
their  own  wickedness,  now  hated  him  with  an  intensity  of  feeling  that 
impelled  them  to  seek  his  destruction. 

During  Smith’s  absence  among  the  Indians,  the  church  at  Jamestown 
had  been  burned,  and  the  Rev.  Mr.  Hunt  was  laboring  earnestly  for  the 
good  of  souls  under  the  shadow  of  great  trees.  Of  that  first  church  edifice. 
Captain  Smith  has  left  us  an  interesting  account.  “ When  I first  went  to 
Virginia,”  he  says,  “ I well  remember  we  did  hang  an  awning  (which  was  an 
old  sail)  to  three  or  four  trees,  to  shadow  us  from  the  sun  ; our  walls  were 
rails  of  wood,  our  seats  unhewed  trees,  till  we  cut  planks ; our  pulpit  a bar 
of  wood  nailed  to  two  neighboring  trees ; in  foul  weather  we  shifted  into  an 
old  rotten  tent,  for  we  had  few  better,  and  thus  came  by  way  of  adventure 
for  new.  This  was  our  church  till  we  built  a homely  thing  like  a barn,  set 
upon  crotchetts,  covered  with  rafts,  sedge,  and  earth,  so  was  also  the  walls. 
The  best  of  our  houses  were  of  the  like  curiosity,  but  the  most  part  far 
worse  workmanship,  that  could  neither  well  defend  wind  nor  rain,  yet  we 
had  daily  Common  Prayer,  morning  and  evening,  every  Sunday  two  ser- 
mons, and  every  three  months  the  Holy  Communion  till  our  minister  died.” 

On  his  return.  Smith  found  the  settlers  engaged  in  building  a house  for 
the  President  of  the  Council.  When  he  was  installed  into  that  office  not 
long  afterward,  he  ordered  the  church  edifice  to  be  rebuilt.  “ Now  the 
building  of  the  palace  was  stayed  as  a thing  needless,”  he  said,  “ and  the 
church  was  repaired and  he  assisted  the  minister  in  all  ways  in  his  power 
to  make  the  people  better. 

When  Newport  returned  to  England  he  found  the  Council  there 
increased  in  numbers  and  power,  and  he  was  employed  to  return  immediately 
with  new  emigrants  and  supplies.  He  arrived  at  Jamestown  early  in  1608 
with  two  vessels,  and  was  received  with  joy.  But  he  brought  no  better 
materials  for  a colony  than  before.  Instead  of  needed  mechanics  and  farm- 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  II 


1 88 


RELIGIOL’S  SERVICES  AT  JAMESTOWN. 


ers  with  families,  he  brought  chiefly  idle  “ gentlemen,”  some  of  them  vicious, 
whose  friends,  Smith  said,  had  sent  them  away  to  “ escape  ill  destinies  at 
home” — the  prison  or  something  worse.  There  were  one  hundred  and 
twenty  of  them,  and  there  was  scarcely  a really  useful  man  among  them. 
There  were  several  unskilled  goldsmiths,  whose  ignorance  caused  a most 
destructive  gold-fever  to  prevail  in  Virginia.  They  pronounced  some  glittcr- 
ing  yellow  earth  near  Jamestown  to  be  a deposit  of  the  precious  metal,  and 
in  spite  of  the  earnest  remonstrances  of  Smith,  the  whole  population  turned 
gold-seekers.  For  awhile  there  was  “no  talk,  no  hope,  no  work,  but  dig 
gold,  refine  gold,  load  gold.”  On  the  recommendation  of  the  goldsmiths, 
Newport  loaded  his  vessel  with  the  worthless  earth,  and  returned  to  Eng- 
land with  the  impression  that  he  was  an  immensely  rich  man.  He  was  soon 
undeceived  by  a scientific  test. 

Captain  Smith  implored  the  settlers  to  plant  and  sow  that  they  might 
have  plenty  and  be  happy,  without  the  aid  of  the  Indians,  who,  chiefly 


Chap.  II.  EXPLORATIONS  BY  CAPTAIN  SMITH.  1 89 

through  the  exertions  of  Pocahontas,  were  sending  them  supplies.  But  they 
would  not  listen  to  the  wise  man,  and  at  length,  in  the  early  summer  of  that 
year,  he  turned  from  Jamestown  in  disgust,  and  with  a few  of  the  more  sen- 
sible men  he  went  in  an  open  boat  to  explore  the  Chesapeake  Bay  and  its 
numerous  tributaries.  In  the  space  of  three  months,  he  made  two  voyages. 
During  the  first  he  went  up  the  Potomac  River  to  the  Falls  near  George- 
town, and  up  the  Rappahannock  to  the  Falls  near  Fredericksburg,  and  then 
returned  to  Jamestown.  During  the  second  voyage  he  went  up  the  Patapsco 
to  the  site  of  Baltimore  and  up  the  narrower  part  of  Chesapeake  Bay  into 
the  Susquehanna  River,  a short  distance  above  Havre-de-Grace,  where  he 
heard  of  the  powerful  Iroquois  Confederacy  in  the  present  State  of  New 
York.  In  these  two  voyages.  Smith  not  only  explored  the  shores  of  great 
waters,  but  penetrated  into  the  country,  made  friendly  alliances  with  several 
chiefs,  and  smoothed  the  way  for  the  future  planting  of  settlements  on  the 
borders  of  the  noble  Chesapeake.  He  had  voyaged  about  three  thousand 
miles  in  an  open  boat  and  made  a map  of  the  region  explored,  remarkable 
for  its  accuracy,  which  is  preserved  in  London. 

When  Captain  Smith  returned  to  Jamestown  early  in  September,  he 
found  the  colony  in  confusion  again.  His  advent  was  hailed  with  delight  by 
the  better  sort  of  the  settlers,  and  three  days  after  his  return  he  was  chosen 
President  of  the  Council.  This  wise  measure  soon  produced  some  good 
fruit.  The  new  president  organized  labor,  and  compelled  the  performance 
of  the  same;  and  when,  a little  later,  Newport  again  came  with  two  ships 
bearing  supplies  and  seventy  emigrants,  he  hoped  to  find  among  the  latter 
better  materials  for  a state.  There  were  two  women  (the  wife  of  Thomas 
Forrest,  and  her  maid,  Anne  Burrows,  who  soon  afterward  married  John 
Laydon,  a carpenter),  the  first  of  European  blood  who  had  trodden  the 
banks  of  the  James;  but  the  men  were  no  better  than  the  other  emigrants. 
And  yet  the  greedy  corporation  who  had  sent  out  such  men  for  the  found- 
ing of  a state,  disappointed  and  unreasonable,  demanded  impossibilities. 
They  sent  a message  to  the  settlers  by  Newport,  saying,  in  substance: 
“ Unless  you  shall  send  us  back  in  these  ships  sufficient  commodities  to  pay 
the  charges  of  the  voyage  [;^2,ooo]  ; unless  you  shall  also  send  us  a lump  of 
gold,  the  product  of  Virginia ; assurances  of  having  found  a passage  to  the 
South  Sea  (Pacific  Ocean),  and  also  one  of  the  lost  colony  sent  to  Roanoke 
by  Raleigh,  you  shall  be  left  in  Virginia  as  banished  men.”  To  this  threat 
Smith  replied  with  spirit,  showing  them  the  absurdity  of  their  demand, 
assuring  them  that  it  was  as  much  as  the  settlers  could  do  to  sustain  life 
with  the  assistance  of  the  savages,  and  saying : “ I entreat  you  rather  send 
but  thirty  carpenters,  husbandmen,  gardeners,  fishermen,  blacksmiths. 


190 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  II. 


masons  and  diggers  of  trees’  roots,  well  provided,  than  a thousand  such  as 
we  have.” 

This  threat  assisted  the  president  in  enforcing  rules  for  labor.  He 
demanded  six  hours  of  work  each  day  from  every  able-bodied  man.  “ He 
who  will  not  work  shall  not  eat,”  he  said.  Very  soon  the  “gentlemen” 
became  expert  in  the  use  of  the  axe,  and  the  little  village  showed  signs  of  an 
orderly  community ; but  so  little  attention  had  been  given  to  agriculture 
that  at  the  end  of  two  years  from  the  first  arrival,  and  with  two  hundred 
emigrants  in  the  settlement,  not  more  than  forty  acres  were  under  cultiva- 
tion. They  were  compelled  to  depend  upon  the  bounty  of  the  red  men  for 
their  sustenance  during  the  winter  of  1608-9. 

With  no  respect  for  the  rights  of  the  settlers  already  in  Virginia ; with 
no  desire  to  build  up  an  industrious  and  prosperous  colony  on  the  banks  of 
the  James  River,  but  with  an  intense  longing  for  the  speedy  accumulation 
of  wealth  by  the  discovery  of  rich  mines  in  America  and  a quick  passage  to 
India,  the  London  Company  sought  to  grasp  all  power  and  to  abolish  all 
freedom  among  the  settlers,  so  making  them  little  better  than  serfs.  For 
this  purpose  they  obtained  wealthy  and  influential  allies ; and  in  the  spring 
of  1609,  the  Company  was  composed  of  twenty-one  peers,  several  bishops, 
ninety-eight  knights,  and  a multitude  of  doctors,  esquires,  gentlemen,  mer- 
chants and  other  citizens.  They  obtained  a new  charter  in  May  under  the 
title  of  “ The  Treasurer  and  Company  of  Adventurers  of  the  City  of  London 
for  the  First  Colony  in  Virginia,”  by  which  the  boundaries  of  their  domain 
were  enlarged  ; the  offices  of  president  and  council  in  Virginia  were  abolished, 
and  all  laws  for  the  settlers  were  to  be  framed  by  the  council  in  England 
and  administered  by  officers  appointed  by  that  council.  The  rule  of  the 
governor  was  made  absolute,  and  the  lives,  liberty  and  property  of  the  set- 
tlers were  placed  at  his  disposal,  whilst  they  were  compelled  to  contribute  a 
certain  share  of  their  net  earnings  to  the  proprietors.  They  were  vassals, 
without  any  recognized  power  to  cast  off  the  yoke.  Not  a valuable  civil 
privilege  was  conceded  to  them. 

Nine  ships  were  fitted  out  by  the  new  Company,  and  freighted  with 
stores  and  more  than  five  hundred  emigrants.  These  were  placed  under  the 
general  command  of  Captain  Newport,  and  sailed  for  Virginia  early  in  June, 
1609.  Sir  Thomas  West  Lord  De  la  Ware,  had  been  appointed  governor 
and  captain-general  of  Virginia  for  life,  with  Sir  Thomas  Gates  as  his  deputy. 
Sir  George  Somers  was  made  admiral  of  Virginia,  with  Newport  as  vice- 
admiral  ; Sir  Thomas  Dale,  high  marshal,  and  Sir  Fernando  Wainman, 
general  of  cavalry.  Gates,  Newport  and  Somers  were  commissioned  to 
administer  the  government  until  the  arrival  of  Lord  De  la  Ware,  who  was 


Chap.  II. 


LIVE  STOCK  SENT  TO  VIRGINIA. 


I9I 

not  then  ready  to  go.  As  there  had  been  no  adjustment  of  precedence 
between  these  three  men,  and  they  could  not  settle  that  point,  they  agreed 
to  go  in  the  same  vessel,  the  Sea-Venture,  Newport’s  flag-ship.  When  she 
was  near  the  coast  of  Virginia,  a hurricane  separated  her  from  the  rest  of 
the  fleet,  and  wrecked  her  on  the  shore  of  one  of  the  Bermuda  Islands. 
Another  small  vessel  perished  in  the  gale,  but  seven  of  the  ships  arrived  at 
Jamestown,  leaving  a large  company  of  emigrants  composed  of  some  of  the 
worst  classes  of  the  population  of  England.  These  were  licentious  and 
profligate  young  men  sent  by  their  friends  with  a hope  that  amendment  in 
their  lives  might  follow,  or  to  screen  them  from  justice;  tradesmen  broken  in 
fortune  and  spirits,  and  vagabonds  of  every  grade,  from  idle  “ gentlemen  ” 
to  dissolute  criminals.  The  only  things  brought  by  the  fleet  that  were  valu- 
able accessories  to  the  settlement  were  horses,  swine,  goats  and  sheep,  and 
domestic  fowls.  To  these  were  added,  two  years  later,  one  hundred  cows 
and  other  cattle. 


VALUABLE  EMIGRANTS  TO  VIRGINIA. 


Such  emigrants  were  calculated  to  corrupt  rather  than  improve  the 
settlement,  and  mischief  ensued.  They  had  their  leaders  among  the 
“ gentlemen,”  who,  on  their  arrival,  proclaimed  the  new  charter,  and  in  the 
absence  of  the  wrecked  commissioners  refused  to  obey  the  president.  Anar- 
chy menaced  the  colony,  but  Smith,  with  his  usual  energy,  asserted  his 
authority  in  the  absence  of  legal  agents  of  the  Company,  and  now,  as  on 
other  occasions,  became  the  savior  of  the  settlement  from  utter  ruin.  He 


192 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  II. 


devised  new  expeditions  and  new  settlements  that  the  vicious  herd  might  be 
employed,  and  the  libertines  were  kept  in  restraint  until  the  autumn,  when 
an  accidental  explosion  of  gunpowder  so  wounded  Smith  that  he  was  com- 
pelled to  go  to  England  for  surgical  aid.  He  delegated  his  authority  to 
George  Percy,  a brother  of  the  Duke  of  Northumberland,  a man  of  excel- 
lent character,  but  deficient  in  force.  Smith  never  returned  to  Virginia. 

It  was  more  than  six  months  after  the  departure  of  Captain  Smith, 
when  the  three  commissioners  arrived  from  the  Bermudas.  Meanwhile,  the 


CAPTAIN  SMITH  AND  POCAHONTAS. 


settlers,  left  almost  without  restraint,  had  brought  awful  miseries  upon  them- 
selves. They  had  indulged  in  every  irregularity  of  life,  and  their  ample 
store  of  provisions  was  soon  exhausted.  The  new  settlers,  by  injustice  and. 
cruelty,  not  only  alienated  the  friendship  of  the  Indians,  but  made  them 
exasperated  enemies.  The  red  men,  who  had  respect  for  Smith  and  feared 
his  power,  despised  the  new  comers.  They  withheld  food  from  the  English, 
and  killed  those  who  came  to  their  cabins  in  search  of  it.  Finally,  they 
devised  a plan  for  exterminating  the  whole  body  of  intruders.  It  was  frus- 


Chap.  II. 


THE  “ STARVING  TIME.” 


193 


trated  by  Pocahontas,  who  proved  to  be  the  guardian  angel  of  the  settlers. 
When  she  heard  of  the  plot,  her  soul  was  troubled.  On  a dark  and  stormy 
night  she  hastened  to  Jamestown,  and  revealing  the  conspiracy  to  Percy, 
put  the  English  on  their  guard. 

But  death  still  brooded  over  the  settlement.  Famine  came  with  its  hor- 
rors and  transformed  civilized  Englishmen  into  cannibals.  They  fed  on 
Indians  whom  they  slew,  and  sometimes  upon  their  own  companions  who 
had  perished  of  hunger.  When  the  commissioners  arrived  in  the  spring  of 
1610,  of  the  four  hundred  and  ninety  persons  whom  Smith  had  left  in  Vir- 
ginia, only  sixty  remained  alive.  More  than  four  hundred  had  perished 
within  six  months  upon  a soil  out  of  whose  generous  bosom  some  moderate 
labor  might  have  drawn  ample  sustenance  for  them  all.  Many  a time 
during  that  winter  and  spring,  which  was  ever  afterward  referred  to  as  “ the 
starving  time,”  did  those  wretched  men  lament  their  folly  and  wickedness 
in  not  following  the  advice  of  Captain  Smith,  who  was  their  true  friend. 
His  labors  for  their  good  had  been  disinterested.  For  his  sacrifices  he  had 
received  no  reward  but  the  approval  of  his  conscience.  Brave,  honest  and 
true,  he  won  the  imperishable  honor  of  being  the  first  planter  of  the  Saxon 
race  on  the  soil  of  the  United  States,  and  is  entitled  to  the  endearing 
name  of  Father  of  Virginia. 

The  commissioners  and  their  fellow-passengers,  who  had  been  wrecked 
on  a fertile  but  uninhabited  island,  found  sufficient  food  in  fruits  there  to 
sustain  them  whilst  building  two  small  vessels  in  which  they  embarked  for 
Virginia.  They  hoped  to  find  a happy  and  prosperous  colony  at  James- 
town ; but  instead  of  the  bright  faces  of  contented  people,  they  saw  the 
horrid  visages  of  sixty  starving  men  in  the  depths  of  despair.  They  were 
perishing  for  want  of  food  without  a prospect  of  obtaining  more.  Gates,  to 
whom  the  other  commissioners  had  agreed  to  commit  the  administration  of 
affairs  in  Virginia,  saw  no  other  way  to  save  the  lives  of  the  starving  men 
than  to  abandon  the  settlement,  sail  to  Newfoundland,  and  distribute  the 
settlers  among  the  English  fishermen  there.  So,  embarking  them  in  four 
pinnaces  which  were  in  the  river,  and  giving  them  a share  of  his  own  stores, 
he  sailed  immediately  for  the  far  northeast.  Some  of  the  settlers  desired 
Gates  to  set  fire  to  the  fort  and  dwellings  at  Jamestown,  on  their  departure, 
but  he  would  not  consent.  It  was  well  he  did  not,  for  at  the  evening 
twilight  the  next  day,  the  whole  company,  with  others,  were  again  at 
Jamestown  offering  thanksgiving  to  God  for  a great  deliverance.  At  dawn 
that  morning,  the  eyes  of  the  disconsolate  fugitives  had  been  greeted  by  the 
apparition  of  white  sails  moving  up  the  James  River  as  Gates  and  his  follow- 
ers were  approaching  its  mouth.  They  were  the  wings  of  Lord  De  la  Ware’s 


194 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  II. 


ships,  which  were  filled  with  provisions  and  emigrants,  accompanied  by  the 
governor,  a pious,  prudent,  generous  and  humane  man.  Back  to  Jamestown 
they  all  sailed.  The  governor  landed  first.  The  emigrants  followed,  and 
when  all  were  on  shore,  his  lordship  fell  upon  his  knees  and  with  bowed 
head  engaged  in  a long  silent  prayer  whilst  the  people  stood  reverently  by. 
When  he  arose,  he  and  the  Rev.  Mr.  Bucke,  who  had  come  with  him  to 
supply  the  place  of  Mr.  Hunt,  led  the  people  in  procession  to  the  unfinished 
church,  where  the  new  pastor  preached  a sermon,  in  the  evening  twilight, 
and  a large  portion  of  the  congregation  joined  in  singing  anthems.  After 
the  religious  services  were  ended,  the  governor  presented  his  credentials  and 
addressed  the  people.  Some  Indians  were  seen  in  the  woods  near  by,  listen- 
ing in  wonder  to  the  songs  of  praise  that  went  up  from  the  lips  of  the  grate- 
ful multitude  on  that  warm  June  evening. 

The  dignity  and  amiable  character  of  Lord  De  la  Ware  commanded  the 
respect  of  the  settlers,  and  the  future  seemed  full  of  bright  promises.  He 
caused  the  church  to  be  rebuilt,  and  to  be  dedicated  with  as  much  pomp 
and  ceremony  as  circumstances  would  permit.  It  was  daily  garnished  with 
white  flowers  ; and  there,  every  morning,  a large  number  of  the  settlers  were 
gathered  to  engage  in  common  prayer,  after  which  each  man  was  required  to 
work  six  hours  during  the  day.  The  dwellings  were  improved  and  many 
more  acres  were  cultivated.  But  the  health  of  Lord  De  la  Ware  failed,  and 
he  returned  to  England  in  the  spring  of  i6ii,  leaving  the  government  in 
charge  of  Percy,  Smith’s  successor.  At  the  same  time  Sir  Thomas  Dale,  a 
brave  soldier,  was  out  on  the  ocean  in  a ship  with  supplies,  and  on  his 
arrival,  which  was  hailed  with  delight,  he  assumed  the  reins  of  government 
and  ruled  by  martial  law  both  the  church  and  state.  He  encouraged  the 
Company  to  persevere  in  the  dignified  work  which  they  had  begun,  and  they 
sent  Sir  Thomas  Gates  with  six  well-furnished  ships  and  three  hundred  emi- 
grants. They  arrived  at  the  close  of  summer.  These  emigrants  were  a 
much  better  class  than  any  who  had  yet  appeared  in  Virginia.  A greater 
portion  of  them  were  sober  and  industrious,  and  their  influence  upon  the 
earlier  settlers  was  salutary.  Gates  assumed  the  functions  of  governor,  and 
Dale  went  up  the  river  and  planted  settlements  at  the  mouth  of  the 
Appomattox  River  (now  Bermuda  Hundred)  and  at  the  Falls  (now  Rich- 
mond). Over  these  the  Rev.  Mr.  Whittaker  was  placed  as  pastor. 

Another  charter  was  now  obtained  for  the  Company,  which  allowed  the 
powers  of  the  association  to  be  distributed  in  a democratic  manner  among  all 
of  the  members,  who  met  in  mass  for  deliberation  and  legislation.  The 
most  important  feature  affecting  the  welfare  of  the  settlement  was  that  which 
allowed  every  man  to  cultivate  a few  acres  of  land  for  his  own  sole  use  and 


Chap.  II. 


POCAHONTAS,  HER  CAPTOR  AND  LOVER. 


195 


benefit.  Before  that  time  the  land  was  tilled  in  common,  and  the  indus- 
trious provided  food  for  the  lazy.  There  was  no  special  incentive  to 
industry  in  that  system ; but  in  the  new  arrangement  there  was  such  a stimu- 
lus to  exertion  that  the  privilege  was  enlarged,  an  ample  supply  of  provi- 
sions for  all  was  easily  obtained,  and  the  community  system  was  abandoned. 
Although  no  political  privileges  were  granted  to  the  settlers  by  the  new 
charter,  they  were  contented. 

And  now  a wicked  act,  which  became  a fortunate  circumstance  for  the 
settlement,  made  a salutary  change  in  the  relations  between  the  English  and 
the  Indians.  Ever  since  the  departure  of  Captain  Smith,  Powhatan  had 
evinced  hostility  to  the  settlers,  and  the  powerful  Chickahominies,  their 
nearest  neighbors,  sympathized  with  him,  and  allowed  no  food  to  be  carried 
to  Jamestown.  Provisions  there  became  scarce,  and  Captain  Argali,  the  sort 
of  buccaneer  whom  we  met  in  Acadie,  and  who  was  then  in  Virginia,  was 
sent  with  a vessel  on  a foraging  expedition  up  the  York  and  James  Rivers. 
Being  near  the  residence  of  Powhatan,  he  bribed  an  Indian  with  the  gift  of 
a copper  kettle,  to  entice  Pocahontas  on  board  his  vessel,  where  he  detained 
her  a prisoner,  expecting  to  get  a large  quantity  of  corn  from  her  father  as  a 
ransom  for  his  daughter,  and  to  recover  some  arms  and  implements  of  labor 
which  had  been  stolen  by  the  Indians.  The  emperor  rejected  the  proposition 
of  ransom  with  scorn,  and  refused  to  hold  any  intercourse  with  the  pirate, 
but  declaring  to  the  authorities  at  Jamestown,  that  if  his  daughter  should  be 
released,  he  would  forget  the  injury  and  be  the  friend  of  the  English.  They 
would  not  trust  his  word,  and  the  maiden  was  taken  to  Jamestown  and 
detained  there  several  months,  but  was  always  treated  with  respectful  con- 
sideration. The  affair  was  assuming  a very  serious  aspect,  when  Love,  the 
powerful  mediator,  settled  the  difficulty.  Among  the  young  men  of  rank 
and  education  at  Jamestown  was  John  Rolfe,  of  an  excellent  English  family, 
who  became  enamored  of  Pocahontas,  and  to  him 

“ She  was  a landscape  of  mild  earth 
Where  all  was  harmony  and  calm  quiet, 

Luxuriant,  budding.” — Byron. 


Pocahontas  reciprocated  Rolfe’s  passion,  and  they  agreed  to  be  wedded. 
But  one  thing  troubled  the  soul  of  the  young  Englishman.  He  was  a 
Christian ; she  was  a Pagan.  “ Is  it  not  my  duty,”  he  said  to  himself,  “ to 
lead  the  blind  into  light  ?”  Then  came  to  his  mind  the  Bible  story  of 
the  visitation  of  the  sons  of  Levi  by  God  in  his  anger,  because  they  sanctified 
strange  women.  But  love  conquered.  He  resolved  to  labor  for  her  enlight- 
enment and  conversion.  The  young  princess  was  an  apt  scholar,  and  very 


196 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  II. 


soon,  in  the  little  chapel  at  Jamestown,  whose  columns  were  rough  pine 
trees  from  the  forests,  and  its  rude  pews  were  of  sweet-smelling  cedar,  and 
its  rough  communion-table  and  pulpit  of  black  walnut,  that  dusky  convert 
stood  before  a font  “ hewn  hollow  between  like  a canoe,”  and  there  received 
the  rite  of  Christian  baptism  with  the  name  of  Rebecca,  at  the  hands  of  Mr. 
Whittaker.  She  was  the  first  Christian  Indian  in  Virginia. 


BAPTISM  OF  POCAHONTAS. 


Very  soon  Pocahontas  again  stood  before  the  chancel  of  the  little  chapel, 
now  as  a bride.  It  was  a charming  day  in  April,  1613.  Her  father’s  con- 
sent to  her  marriage  had  been  easily  obtained,  and  he  had  sent  his  brother 
Opachisco  to  give  away  his  daughter  according  to  the  Christian  ritual,  for  he 
would  not  trust  himself  with  the  English  at  Jamestown.  Over  the  “ fair, 
broad  windows”  hung  festoons  of  evergreens  bedecked  with  wild  flowers, 


Chap.  II. 


MARRIAGE  OF  POCAHONTAS. 


197 


i 

with  the  waxen  leaves  and  scarlet  berries  of  the  holly.  The  communion 
table  was  covered  with  a “ fair  white  linen  cloth,”  and  bore  bread  from  the 
wheat  fields  around  Jamestown,  and  wine  from  the  luscious  grapes  from  the 
adjacent  woods.  All  the  people  at  Jamestown  were  spectators  of  the 
nuptials.  There  were  Sir  Thomas  Gates,  and  Master  Sparks  who  had  been 
co-embassador  with  Rolfe  to  the  court  of  Powhatan.  Young  George  Percy 
and  Henry  Spilman  were  there ; and  near  them,  an  earnest  watcher  of  the 
ceremony,  was  the  elder  brother  of  Pocahontas,  with  her  younger  brother 
and  many  youths  and  maidens  from  the  forest.  There,  too,  was  Mistress 
John  Rolfe,  Mrs.  Easton  and  child,  and  Mistress  Horton  and  grand-child 
with  her  late  maid-servant,  Elizabeth  Parsons,  who,  on  Christmas  Eve  pre- 
viously, had  married  Thomas  Powell.  These  were  all  the  English  women 
then  in  Virginia,  and  all  returned  to  Europe. 

When  all  things  were  in  readiness,  the  bride  and  groom  entered  the 
chapel.  Pocahontas  was  dressed  in  a simple  tunic  of  white  muslin  from  the 
looms  of  Dacca.  Her  arms  were  bare  even  to  her  shoulders  ; and  hanging 
loosely  to  her  feet  was  a robe  of  rich  stuff  presented  to  her  by  Sir  Thomas 
Dale,  and  fancifully  embroidered  by  herself  and  her  maidens.  A gaudy 
fillet  encircled  her  head,  and  held  the  gay  plumage  of  birds  and  a veil  of 
gauze,  while  her  wrists  and  ankles  were  adorned  with  the  simple  jewelry  of 
the  native  workshops.  Rolfe  was  attired  in  the  gay  clothing  of  an  English 
cavalier  of  that  period,  and  upon  his  thigh  he  wore  the  short  sword  of  a 
gentleman  of  distinction  in  society.  He  was  a noble  specimen  of  manly 
beauty  and  dignity  in  form  and  carriage,  and  she  of  womanly  modesty  and 
lovely  simplicity.  Upon  the  chancel  steps,  where  no  railing  interfered,  the 
good  Whittaker  stood  in  sacerdotal  robes,  and,  with  impressive  voice,  pro- 
nounced the  marriage  ritual  of  the  Anglican  Church,  there  first  planted  on 
the  American  continent.  The  governor,  sitting  on  his  right  on  a richly- 
carved  chair  of  state,  with  his  ever-attendant  halberdiers  with  helmets,  at  his 
back,  heartily  said  Amen ! at  the  conclusion  of  the  ceremony. 

So  were  wedded  the  Rose  of  England  and  the  Totem  or  Indian  symbol  of 
nationality,  giving  promise  of  a friendly  union  of  races  in  Virginia.  It 
brought  present  peace,  and  Powhatan  was  ever  afterward  the  fast  friend  of 
the  English.  Rolfe  and  his  spouse  “ lived  civilly  and  lovingly  together  ” 
until  the  departure  of  Governor  Sir  Thomas  Dale  for  England  in  1616, 
whither  they,  with  several  others  of  the  settlement  and  all  the  English 
women  there,  accompanied  him.  There  the  “ Lady  Rebecca  ” received 
great  attentions  from  the  court  and  all  below  it.  The  Lord  Bishop  of  Lon- 
don entertained  her  with  “ festival  and  pomp,”  and  at  court  she  was  treated 
with  the  ceremonious  respect  due  to  the  daughter  of  a monarch.  The  silly 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  II. 


198 

bigot  on  the  British  throne  was  angry  because  one  of  his  subjects  had  dared 
to  marry  a lady  of  royal  blood ; and  Captain  Smith,  for  fear  of  the  royal  dis- 
pleasure, would  not  allow  her  to  call  him  “ father  ” as  she  desired  to  do. 
Her  simple,  tender  heart  was  grieved  because  of  his  seeming  want  of  affection 
for  her.  The  king,  in  his  absurd  dreams  of  the  royal  prerogative,  imagined 
that  Rolfe  or  his  descendants  might  lay  claim  to  the  crown  of  Virginia,  in 
behalf  of  his  royal  wife ! And  it  was  considered  in  council  whether  he  had 
not  committed  treason ! 

Pocahontas  remained  in  England  about  a year ; and  when  she  was  about 
to  embark  for  America  with  her  husband  and  son,  and  Tomocome,  her 
father’s  chief  councillor,  she  sickened  and  died  at  Gravesend  in  June,  1617, 
when  she  was  not  quite  twenty-two  years  of  age.  She  left  a son,  Thomas 
Rolfe,  who  became  a distinguished  man  in  Virginia,  and  whose  descendants 
have  been  numbered  among  the  honorable  citizens  of  that  commonwealth. 

Prosperity  was  now  the  destiny  of  the  settlements  in  Virginia,  although 
the  prime  element  of  a permanent  state — the  family — was  yet  wanting. 
Because  of  this  want,  the  settlers  continually  indulged  in  dreams  of  return- 
ing home — to  England.  Dale,  who  had  ruled  with  wisdom  as  well  as 
energy,  discouraged  this  feeling,  and  by  engaging  them  in  the  cultivation 
of  the  tobacco  plant,  somewhat  allayed  it.  His  successors  encouraged  its 
production,  and  in  spite  of  the  silly  efforts  of  King  James  to  prevent  its  use 
in  England,  by  forbidding  its  cultivation  in  the  British  islands,  its  growth 
and  exportation  to  the  mother  country  soon  became  the  staple  and  very 
profitable  business  of  the  planters  in  Virginia.  Its  culture  became  a 
mania.  The  streets  of  Jamestown  were  planted  with  it,  and  food-producing 
products  were  so  neglected,  that  while  great  cargoes  of  tobacco  were  pre- 
paring for  England,  the  necessaries  of  life  were  wanting.  It  became  the 
currency  of  the  country,  the  money  value  of  a pound  of  tobacco  being  fixed 
at  about  sixty-six  cents. 

Dale  left  Argali  as  deputy  governor,  but  his  petty  tyranny  and  rank  dis- 
honesty disgusted  the  people.  The  story  of  his  bad  conduct  told  in  Eng- 
land checked  emigration,  and  his  office  was  given  to  the  excellent  George 
Yeardley,  a wise  statesman  and  friend  of  man.  On  the  death  of  Lord  De  la 
Ware  while  he  was  on  a voyage  to  resume  the  reins  of  government  there, 
Yeardley  was  appointed  governor  with  broad  discretionary  powers.  Abolish- 
ing martial  law,  releasing  the  planters  from  feudal  service  and  confirming 
their  titles  to  lands  in  their  possession,  and  establishing  a representative  gov- 
ernment on  the  banks  of  the  James,  he  laid  the  foundations  of  a permanent 
colony.  He  had  found  the  settlers  yearning  for  the  freedom  enjoyed  by  their 
fellow-subjects  in  England  under  the  British  constitution.  He  could  not 


Chap.  II. 


WIVES  FOR  THE  PLANTERS. 


199 


reconcile  that  freedom  with  then  existing  disabilities,  so,  with  the  sanction  of 
the  Company,  he  introduced  a new  political  system  in  Virginia.  The  settle- 
ments were  divided  into  eleven  boroughs,  each  having  two  representatives, 
called  burgesses,  who  were  chosen  by  the  people.  These,  with  the  governor 
and  council,  constituted  the  colonial  government.  The  burgesses  were 
allowed  to  debate  all  questions  pertaining  to  the  colony,  but  their  decisions 
were  not  law  until  confirmed  by  the  Company  in  England.  Because  of 
these  liberties,  the  settlers  expressed  their  gratitude;  and  when  in  June, 
1619,  a representative  assembly  met  at  Jamestown,  they  felt  that  they  had  a 
home  in  Virginia.  They  “ fell  to  building  houses  and  planting  corn,”  says  an 
old  chronicler ; and  these  houses  were  soon  made  happy  ones  by  domestic 
virtues.  Within  two  years  after  the  first  meeting  of  the  House  of  Burgesses 
— the  first  representative  assembly  in  America — about  two  hundred  and  fifty 
reputable  young  women  were  sent  over  from  England  to  become  wives  for 
the  planters.  These  were  received  with  gladness,  and  cherished  with  fond- 
ness. The  tribe  of  gold-seekers  had  disappeared.  Industry  was  the  rule 
and  not  the  exception  in  the  settlements,  and  the  COLONY  of  Virginia  was 
firmly  established. 


CHAPTER  III. 


EXPLORATIONS  IN  NEW  ENGLAND — KIDNAPPING  INDIANS — RELIGIOUS  PARTIES  IN  ENGLAND — PER- 
SECUTIONS— A THEOLOGICAL  CONFERENCE — BAD  CONDUCT  OF  KING  JAMES — PURITANS  IN 
HOLLAND — LONGINGS  FOR  AMERICA — PREPARATIONS  FOR  EMIGRATION — “PILGRIMS”  GO  TO 
AMERICA — CONSTITUTION  OF  GOVERNMENT  SIGNED — FOUNDING  OF  PLYMOUTH — SUFFERINGS 
OF  THE  EMIGRANTS — FIRST  MARRIAGE  IN  PLYMOUTH  COLONY. 


settlement  in  New  England. 

The  restless  Captain  Smith  did  not  long  remain  idle  after  his  return  from 
Virginia.  In  company  with  four  London  merchants,  he  fitted  out  two  ships 
for  the  purpose  of  discovery  and  traffic  in  the  northern  regions  of  America. 
Captain  Thomas  Hunt  commanded  one  of  the  vessels,  and  Smith  sailed  in 
the  other.  They  left  the  Downs  at  the  beginning  of  March,  1614,  and  first 
landed  on  the  island  of  Mohegan,  about  twenty  miles  from  the  mouth  of  the 
Penobscot  River,  where  they  sought  whales,  but  finding  none  Smith  left  the 
crews  to  engage  in  common  fishing,  while  he  and  eight  men,  in  a small 
boat,  should  explore  the  neighboring  coasts  and  gather  furs.  They  went  up 
the  several  rivers  far  into  the  interior,  and  explored  the  whole  coast  from  the 
Penobscot  to  Cape  Cod.  Smith  constructed  a map  of  the  region ; and  after 
an  absence  of  seven  months,  the  vessels  returned  to  England  with  cargoes 
of  considerable  value.  He  laid  his  map  before  Prince  Charles,  the  heir 
apparent  to  the  throne,  and  a man  of  considerable  literary  and  artistic  taste. 
The  Prince  procured  from  his  father  a confirmation  of  the  title  of  New  Eng- 
land, which  Smith  had  given  to  the  country,  on  his  map ; and  so  that  region 
from  twenty  miles  eastward  of  the  Hudson  River  has  ever  since  been  called. 
As  usual,  crime  dimmed  the  lustre  of  these  achievements.  Whilst  Smith 
was  exploring  the  coasts.  Captain  Hunt,  an  avaricious  and  profligate  man, 
wishing,  apparently,  to  impede  settlements  by  inflaming  the  wrath  of  the 
Indians,  so  that  he  and  a few  others  might  enjoy  the  monopoly  of  traffic  on 
that  coast,  kidnapped  twenty-seven  of  the  savages  at  Cape  Cod,  with 
Squanto  their  chief,  and  taking  them  to  Spain  sold  them  for  slaves.  Some 


TE  have  considered  the  failures  of  the  Plymouth  Company  to 
^ plant  settlements  in  America.  We  will  now  consider  other 
attempts  and  failures,  and  the  permanent  establishment  of  a 


Chap.  III. 


CAPTAIN  SMITH  AND  NEW  ENGLAND. 


201 


of  them  were  taken  by  benevolent  friars,  who  educated  them  for  missionaries 
among  the  tribes,  but  only  Squanto  returned  to  America.  The  effect  of 
this  crime  satisfied  the  apparent  wishes  of  Hunt.  The  next  fishing  vessels 
that  came  from  New  England  brought  word  that  the  natives  were  greatly 
exasperated. 

This  news  did  not  discourage  Captain  Smith.  On  his  return  he  had  an  in- 
terview with  the  energetic  and  ever-hopeful  Ferdinando  Gorges,  and  inspired 
him  with  such  desires  to  plant  a settlement  in  New  England,  that  the  Plym- 
outh Company  asked  Smith  to  lead  a colony  thither.  He  believed  that  he 
could  allay  the  anger  of  the  natives,  as  he  had  done  in  Virginia,  and  having 
accepted  the  invitation  of  the  Company,  he  sailed  with  two  ships  and  some 
emigrants  in  the  spring  of  1615.  Smith’s  ship  was  shattered  by  a tempest 
and  returned  to  port.  On  the  4th  of  July  following  he  sailed  again,  in  a 
'Dark  of  sixty  tons,  and  was  soon  captured  by  a French  squadron.  While  on 
board  one  of  the  Gallic  vessels,  he  wrote  an  account  of  his  voyage  to  New 
England,  which  was  published  the  next  year.  After  a brief  captivity,  he 
was  released  and  returned  home.  Meanwhile,  the  Plymouth  Company  had 
made  him  admiral  of  New  England ; but,  discouraged  by  ill  luck,  the  asso- 
ciation had  again  abandoned  the  project  of  planting  a colony  there.  Smith 
now  drops  almost  out  of  sight  in  history.  He  lived  to  see  his  friend.  Prince 
Charles,  seated  on  the  throne  of  his  father;  and,  not  long  afterwards  (1631), 
the  founder  of  the  Virginia  colony  died  at  the  age  of  fifty-one  years. 

Thus  far  English  settlements  in  America  had  been  attempted  by  private 
adventurers,  or  commercial  associations,  with  no  higher  aim  than  the  acqui- 
sition of  wealth.  That  acquisition  was  denied,  and  full  success  was  not 
obtained  until  better  men,  with  more  exalted  motives,  came  to  people  the 
lands.  These  came  to  New  England  with  families  and  were  prepared  to 
stay,  not  .so  much  for  the  betterment  of  their  temporal  estates,  as  for  the 
unmolested  enjoyment  of  civil  and  religious  freedom,  which  was  denied 
them  at  home. 

We  have  seen  how  three  powerful  religious  parties— Roman  Catholic, 
Anglican  and  Puritan — crystallized  into  distinct  sects  at  about  the  beginning 
of  Elizabeth’s  reign,  all  struggling  for  supremacy.  The  Puritans  were  fewer 
in  numbers  than  either  of  their  antagonists,  but  were  stronger  in  the  moral 
power  which  asserts  and  defends  the  rights  of  man.  They  boldly  declared 
the  right  of  private  judgment  in  religious  matters  <-o  be  inalienable,  and  that 
every  human  being  was  endowed  with  the  natural  privilege  of  worshipping 
the  Creator  in  accordance  with  the  dictates  of  conscience.  Upon  the  same 
platform  of  principles  they  asserted  the  rights  of  the  people  to  the  enjoy- 
ment of  civil  freedom.  The  Puritan  pulpits  became  the  tribunes  of  the  com- 


202 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  II. 


mon  people,  and  sometimes  the  preachers  were  bold  enough  to  promulgate 
the  democratic  doctrine,  so  dangerous  to  the  royal  prerogative,  that  the  sov- 
ereign was  amenable  to  p2iblic  opinion  when  fairly  expressed. 

As  the  Romish  ritual  was  retained  in  the  Anglican  Church,  many  of  the 
leading  clergymen  of  the  latter  opposed  its  use.  Bishop  Hooper  made 
Puritanism  conspicuous  by  refusing  to  be  consecrated  in  the  ecclesiastical 
vestments ; and  Bishop  Coverdale,  at  a later  period,  and  other  high  digni- 
taries, refused  to  subscribe  to  the  Liturgy  and  ceremonials,  and  so  led  the 
great  army  of  Nonconformists.  The  fears  and  jealousy  of  the  queen  were 
aroused,  and  after  years  of  effort,  the  Thirty-nine  Articles  of  Religion  of 
the  Anglican  Church,  were  declared  by  an  act  of  Parliament  to  be  the  rule 
of  faith  and  practice  for  all  subjects  of  the  realm.  Whitgift,  Archbishop  of 
Canterbury,  was  commanded  to  enforce  dis- 
cipline. He  obeyed  the  royal  voice  with 
alacrity,  and  immediately  issued  instructions 
to  the  bishops  to  “ forbid  and  prevent 
preaching,  catechizing,  and  praying  in  any 
private  family  in  the  presence  of  persons  not 
belonging  to  it,  and  to  silence  all  preachers 
and  catechists  who  had  not  received  orders 
from  Episcopal  hands,  or  who  refused  or 
neglected  to  read  the  whole  service,  or  to 
wear  the  prescribed  clerical  habits,  or  to  sub- 
scribe to  the  queen’s  supremacy,  the  Thirty- 
nine  Articles  and  the  Book  of  Common 
Prayer.”  Under  a provision  of  the  Act  of 
Supremacy,  the  queen  now  established  a 
court  of  High  Commission  for  the  detection 
and  punishment  of  Nonconformists,  with 
powers  almost  as  absolute  as  those  of  the 
Inquisition  of  the  Italian  Church.  With 
that  tremendous  engine  of  despotism,  the 
Primate  worked  with  vigor  in  the  suppres- 
sion of  heresy.  Ministers  were  silenced ; 

some  persons  were  put  to  death,  and  there  was  petty  persecution  every- 
where. Yet  Puritanism  flourished  and  grew  more  rank,  especially  in  secret. 
Ministers  and  congregations  withdrew  from  the  Anglican  Church,  and  sc 
acquired  the  name  of  Separatists  or  Independents.  They  numbered,  at  the 
time  of  the  death  of  Elizabeth,  about  twenty  thousand  in  the  British  realm, 
and  were  the  special  objects  for  Whitgift’s  lash.  Some  of  their  ministers  and 


A Pl’RITAN. 


Chap.  III. 


THE  KING  AND  THE  PURITAN.S. 


203 


their  congregations,  unable  to  endure  the  pressure,  withdrew  to  Holland, 
where  there  was  religious  freedom  for  all. 

On  the  accession  of  James,  a reputed  “ Presbyterian  king,”  the  Puritans 
indulged  high  hopes  of  toleration,  perhaps  of  supremacy.  They  were 
doomed  to  wretched  disappointment.  Soon  after  James  ascended  the 
throne  he  called  a conference  at  Hampton  Court,  in  which  he  was  the  chief 
actor,  playing  the  parts  of  brute  and  mountebank.  The  Puritan  divines, 
.some  of  them  the  most  eminent  scholars  in  the  land,  were  annoyed  by 
coarse  browbeating  by  the  Bishop  of  London,  and  the  coarser  jests  of  the 
king.  Whitgift,  venerable  with  age,  was  present,  and  w'hen  the  “ royal 
buffoon”  said  to  the  Puritan  ministers:  “You  want  to  strip  Christ  again; 
away  with  your  snivelling,”  and  much  more  that  was  coarse  and  offensive, 
the  Primate  exclaimed,  “Your  Majesty  speaks  by  the  special  assistance  of 
God’s  Spirit  and  the  Bishop  of  London  fell  upon  his  knees  and  said : “ I 
protest  my  heart  melteth  for  joy  that  Almighty  God,  of  his  singular  mercy, 
has  given  us  such  a king  as  since  Christ’s  time  has  not  been.”  A brilliant 
modern  English  writer,  expressing  the  verdict  of  history,  says  of  that  king: 
“ He  was  cunning,  covetous,  wasteful,  idle,  drunken,  greedy,  dirty,  cowardly, 
a great  swearer,  and  the  most  conceited  man  on  earth.”  The  discussions  at 
the  Hampton  Court  conference,  conducted  with  so  much  ill-breeding  on  the 
part  of  the  king  and  some  of  the  High  Churchmen,  led  to  the  important 
result  of  the  appointment  of  a commission  of  learned  men  to  make  that 
translation  of  the  Bible  now  in  use  among  Protestants. 

The  Puritans  were  humiliated  and  discouraged  by  this  farce  at  Hampton 
Court ; and  when  the  king  told  them,  “ I will  make  you  conform  or  I will 
harry  ye  out  of  the  land,”  and  silenced  or  imprisoned  three  hundred  of  their 
ministers,  many  of  the  thirty  thousand  Nonconformists  in  the  kingdom  felt 
like  seeking  refuge  in  a foreign  country.  And  many  of  them  did  join  their 
brethren  already  in  Holland.  Among  them  was  Richard  Clifton,  pastor  of  a 
rural  congregation  in  Nottinghamshire.  In  that  congregation  was  John 
Robinson  as  teacher ; and  the  most  considerable  private  member  was 
William  Brewster,  postmaster  at  Scrooby,  and  at  one  time  a favorite  of  Secre- 
tary Davidson  under  Queen  Elizabeth.  The  pastor  and  the  congregation, 
after  many  trials,  made  their  way  to  Amsterdam,  in  small  companies,  in  1608, 
where  they  were  united.  From  that  city,  in  the  course  of  a few  months, 
they  went  to  Leyden,  a city  of  seventy  thousand  inhabitants.  Clifton  was 
dead  and  Robinson  was  chosen  to  be  their  pastor,  with  William  Brewster  as 
the  chief  elder.  After  awhile  they  all  found  employment  and  were  happy, 
with  their  families  around  them.  The  congregation  became  large  and 
flourishing,  for  many  of  their  persecuted  brethren  at  home  joined  them. 


204 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  11. 


English  loyalty  and  patriotism  asserted  their  power  in  the  hearts  of  these 
exiles  for  conscience  sake.  Though  driven  from  their  native  land  by  perse- 
cution, they  had  not  lost  their  affection  for  it ; and  they  yearned  to  live 
“ under  the  protection  of  the  state  of  England.”  They  had  heard  of  beau- 
tiful Virginia,  and  longed  for  the  freedom  of  the  forest.  That  band  of  noble 
men  and  women  revealed  a generous  impulse  when  they  said  : “If  God 
would  be  pleased  to  discover  some  place  unto  them,  though  in  America, 
where  they  might  live  comfortably  by  themselves,  and  being  freed  from  anti- 
Christian  bondage,  might  keep  their  names  and  nature,  and  not  only  be  a 
means  to  enlarge  the  dominions  of  the  English  state,  but  the  Church  akso, 
if  the  Lord  had  a people  among  the  natives,  whither  he  would  bring  them  ; 
thereby  they  thought  they  might  more  glorify  God,  do  more  good  to  their 
country,  better  provide  for  their  posterity  and  live  to  be  more  refreshed  by 
their  labors  than  ever  they  could  do  in  Holland,  where  they  were.”  Patriot- 
ism and  Christian  benevolence  warmed  their  hearts. 

“ They  sought  not  gold  nor  guilty  ease. 

Upon  this  rock-bound  shore  ; 

They  left  such  prizeless  toj'S  as  these 
To  minds  that  loved  them  more. 

They  sought  to  breathe  a freer  air, 

To  worship  God  unchain'd — 

They  welcomed  pain  and  danger  here, 

When  rights  like  these  were  gain’d." 

The  project  of  emigration  to  America  caused  much  discu.ssion.  They 
looked  every  difficulty  square  in  the  face — the  dangers  of  the  sea  and  the 
savages ; the  burdens  of  fatigue  that  would  be  laid  upon  the  weak  and  aged 
in  so  long  a voyage;  the  cost  of  the  enterprise,  and  the  utter  uncertainty 
that  hovered  around  the  whole  project.  These  were  all  considered,  and 
made  dark  shadings  to  the  brighter  pictures  which  faith  and  hope  created. 
They  pondered  and  prayed,  and  came  to  the  conclusion  to  emigrate  to 
America.  The  Dutch  offered  to  send  them  to  Hudson’s  River,  free  of 
charge,  with  their  household  goods  and  cattle,  if  they  would  settle  there. 
They  patriotically  declined  this  generous  proposal  because  they  wished  to 
live  on  “ English  land,”  somewhere  within  the  bounds  of  the  North  Vir- 
ginia domain,  the  proprietors  whereof  were  then  contemplating  vast  schemes 
of  colonization  under  a new  charter  which  they  hoped  to  obtain  from  the 
king.  That  charter  was  granted  late  in  1620.  It  made  the  company  abso- 
lute owners  of  a domain  containing  more  than  a million  square  miles.  They 
superseded  the  original  Plymouth  Company,  and  assumed  the  corporate  title 
of  The  Council  of  Plymouth._ 


Chap.  III. 


EMBARKATION  OF  THE  PILGRIMS. 


205 


Before  the  charter  was  granted,  the  congregation  at  Leyden  sent  two 
agents  to  England  to  ask  leave  of  the  Plymouth  Company  to  settle  within 
their  domain,  and  to  procure  a guaranty  from  the  king  that  they  should 
enjoy  religious  freedom  in  their  proposed  new  home.  They  obtained  the 
permission  of  the  Company,  but  the  king  would  give  them  no  w’ritten 
promise.  Under  the  influence  of  Edward  Sandys,  he  gave  them  an  oral 
promise  that  they  should  not  be  disturbed  so  long  as  they  should  give  no 
public  offence.  His  word  was  considered  no  more  stable  than  a rope  of 
sand,  and  many  were  loth  to  unsettle  themselves  upon  such  a fickle  tenure. 
But  it  was  finally  concluded  to  take  the  risk,  and  a deputation  was  again  sent 
to  England  to  make  arrangements  for  the  emigration.  A joint-stock  com- 
pany with  some  London  merchants  and  others  was  formed,  by  the  terms  of 
which  the  services  of  emigrants  who  could  not  contribute  money  w'ere 
accepted  as  an  equivalent  for  cash,  the  value  of  each  share  being  fixed  at 
.;fio.  All  profits  were  to  be  reserved  for  seven  years,  at  the  end  of  w'hich 
time  the  lands,  houses,  and  every  product  of  their  joint  industry  were  to  be 
valued,  and  an  equal  portion  to  be  divided  among  the  shareholders. 
Captain  Smith,  the  founder  of  Virginia,  offered  to  accompany  them,  but  his 
aristocratic  notions  were  a bar  and  his  offer  w'as  declined. 

It  was  agreed  that  only  a portion  of  the  congregation  at  Leyden — “ the 
youngest  and  strongest  ” — should  first  go  to  America  under  the  spiritual 
guidance  of  Elder  Brewster,  then  a little  more  than  fifty  years  of  age,  w'hile 
the  larger  portion  should  remain  with  Mr.  Robinson  and  follow  the  next 
year  if  the  report  of  the  pioneers  should  be  favorable.  Two  small  vessels 
were  purchased  for  the  voyage — the  Spccd^vcll,  of  sixty  tons  burthen,  and 
the  May-Flower,  of  one  hundred  and  eighty  tons.  In  the  summer  of  1620, 
a portion  of  the  congregation  at  Leyden  embarked  in  the  former  vessel  at 
Delft  Haven,  for  England,  wTere  she  was  joined,  at  Southampton,  by  the 
latter.  These  emigrants,  like  their  brethren  left  behind,  feeling  that  they 
had  no  home — no  abiding  place — but  were  pilgrims  and  strangers,  assumed 
the  name  of  Pilgrims,  by  which  they  are  known  in  history — “ The  Pilgrim 
Fathers.” 

The  embarkation  at  Delft  Haven  was  a picturesque  and  interesting  scene. 
A large  portion  of  the  congregation  at  Leyden  followed  the  emigrants  to 
the  port,  fourteen  miles  distant,  after  those  who  were  to  remain  had  feasted 
the  pioneers  at  the  house  of  the  pastor.  At  the  port,  after  another  feast, 
they  all  engaged  in  religious  exercises — prayers  and  psalm-singing — the  voy- 
agers on  the  deck  of  the  Speedwell  and  the  others  on  the  quay.  When  the 
sails  of  the  vessel  were  spread  and  she  had  left  her  moorings,  the  emigrants 
gave  their  brethren  a parting  salute  with  musketry  and  three  small  cannon. 


2o6 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  II. 


The  two  ships  sailed  for  America  on  the  6th  of  August.  The  Speedwell 
was  soon  reported  to  be  too  leaky  to  proceed,  and  both  vessels  went  back  to 
Dartmouth.  She  was  repaired,  and  when  again  she  was  well  out  upon  the 
Atlantic  she  was  reported  to  be  unseaworthy,  and  returned.  It  was  believed 
that  her  captain  and  some  of  the  company  lost  courage,  and  untruly  re- 
ported her  to  be  in  a dangerous  condition.  She  did  not  again  sail  for  the 
Western  world.  The  more  courageous  of  her  company  joined  those  on  the 
May-Floiver,  and  on  the  6th  of  September  the  latter  sailed  from  Plymouth 
with  forty-one  men  as  settlers  with  their  families,  numbering  in  all  one  hun- 
dred-and-one  souls.  Among  these  were  William  Brewster  and  his  numerous 
family,  and  William  Bradford,  of  Scrooby ; John  Carver,  a deacon  in  the 
Church  at  Leyden  ; young  Edward  Winslow  and  his  bride,  the  richest  couple 
of  the  flock  ; Miles  Standish,  a fiery  little  soldier,  and  his  beautiful  wife  Rose  ; 
John  Alden,  the  youngest  of  the  Pilgrims,  being  only  twenty-one  years  of 
age,  and  a favorite  of  Standish;  John  Allerton  and  Dr.  Edward  Fuller,  all 
of  whom  were  distinguished  in  the  history  of  the  colony. 

After  a boisterous  voyage  of  sixty-three  days,  the  May-Flower  arrived  off 
Cape  Cod.  Her  destination  was  some  “point  near  Hudson’s  River,  but 
within  the  territory  of  the  London  Company” — somewhere  on  the  shores  of 
New  Jersey.  Turning  southward,  the  ship  encountered  “perilous  shoals,” 
perhaps  those  off  Nantucket,  when  she  was  made  to  retrace  her  line,  double 
the  headland,  and  come  to  anchor  in  the  bay  inclosed  by  the  long  peninsula 
of  Cape  Cod  sixty  miles  in  length,  in  what  is  now  the  roadstead  of  Province- 
town.  The  weather  was  fine  and  the  air  was  crisp,  for  it  was  early  in 
November.  To  prevent  anarchy  when  they  should  form  a settlement,  the 
following  instrument  was  drawn  up,  and  on  a little  table  in  the  cabin  of  the 
May-Flower  was  signed  by  the  entire  company  of  forty-one  adult  masculine 
emigrants  : 

“ In  the  name  of  God,  Amen.  We  whose  names  are  here  underwritten, 
the  loyal  subjects  of  our  dread  sovereign  lord.  King  James,  by  the  grace  of 
God,  of  Great  Britain,  France  and  Ireland,  King,  Defender  of  the  Faith,  etc., 
having  undertaken  for  the  glory  of  God,  and  advancement  of  the  Christian 
Faith,  and  honor  of  our  king  and  country,  a voyage  to  plant  the  first  colony 
in  the  northern  parts  of  Virginia,  do,  by  these  pre.sents,  solemnly  and 
mutually,  in  the  presence  of  God  and  of  one  another,  covenant  and  combine 
ourselves  together  into  a civil  body  politic,  for  our  better  ordering  and  pre- 
servation, and  furtherance  of  the  ends  aforesaid ; and  by  virtue  hereof  to 
enact,  constitute,  and  frame  such  just  and  equal  laws,  ordinances,  acts,  con- 
stitutions, and  offices,  from  time  to  time,  as  shall  be  thought  most  meet  and 
convenient  for  the  general  good  of  the  colony ; unto  which  we  promise  all 


LANDING  OF  THE  PILGRIMS 


I 

1 


jI 


Chap.  III. 


LANDING  OF  THE  PILGRIMS. 


207 


due  submission  and  obedience.  In  witness  whereof  we  have  hereunto  sub- 
scribed our  names  at  Cape  Cod,  the  iith  of  November,  in  the  year  of  the 
reign  of  our  sovereign  lord.  King  James,  of  England,  France  and  Ireland, 
the  eighteenth,  and  of  Scotland  the  fifty-fourth.  Anno  Domini,  1620.” 

This  was  the  first  constitution  of  government  ever  signed  by  a whole 
people.  More  than  a month  passed  after  this  act  before  the  Pilgrims  landed. 
Explorations  of  the  coasts  of  the  great  Bay  were  made  in  search  of  a good 
place  for  a settlement.  In  a shallop  and  on  foot  the  explorers  wandered, 
often  suffering  much  from  the  biting  cold  of  winter,  which  came  early  with 
binding  frost,  and  blinding,  hindering  snow.  They  saw  few  natives,  and 
these  were  shy  or  hostile.  They  found  some  graves ; some  remains  of 
human  habitations ; many  deserted  wigwams ; some  heaps  of  maize  or 
Indian  corn,  and  some  tokens  of  civilized  visitors  here  and  there,  when  they 
touched  the  shores.  They  were  assailed  by  a few  savages  who  knew  the 
English  as  kidnappers,  for  it  was  only  a few  years  before  that  Hunt  had  car- 
ried away  more  than  a score  of  their  people.  At  length  the  explorers  came 
to  a snug  harbor,  and  landed  upon  a rock  on  the  site  of  Plymouth,  almost 
due  west  across  the  water  from  where  the  May-Flower  lay.  It  seemed  a 
goodly  place  for  a settlement,  and  they  chose  it  as  such.  That  landing  took 
place  on  the  22d  of  December,  1620.  It  was  an  important  event  in  the 
history  of  New  England,  and  since  the  year  1767  its  anniversary  has  been 
celebrated  ; and  fragments  of  the  rock — “ Plymouth  Rock,”  which  has  been 
called  the  “ Blarney  Stone  of  New  England,” — are  preserved  on  the  spot 
with  care. 

The  May-Flower  was  now  immediately  brought  across  and  anchored  in 
the  harbor,  when  her  precious  cargo  of  human  beings,  men,  women,  and 
children — the  seed  of  a nation — were  landed.  There  had  been  an  addition 
made  to  the  number  of  the  emigrants  since  the  explorers  departed,  for  the 
wife  of  William  White  had  given  birth  to  a boy,  who  was  named  Peregrine. 
The  good  ship  that  brought  them  safely  across  the  stormy  Atlantic  was 
safely  moored ; and  in  grateful  recollection  of  the  hospitalities  they  had 
received  at  the  port  from  which  they  had  sailed  from  England,  they  named 
the  spot  Plymouth. 

The  first  care  of  the  Pilgrims  was  to  build  houses,  after  they  had  planted 
their  five  cannon  on  a platform  and  erected  a store-house  for  their  food. 
But  with  the  labor  began  sickness.  Exposure  and  poor  food  made  dreadful 
ravages  upon  their  vitality  that  could  not  be  stayed.  There  were  no  deli- 
cacies, and  very  little  wholesome  food.  The  sailors  unkindly  refused  to  let 
them  have  a variety,  by  sharing  with  the  suffering  their  abundance  of  coarse 
food  on  the  ship,  until  sickness  invaded  their  circle,  and  the  kindness  of  the 


2o8 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  11. 


Pilgrims  taught  them  to  be  ashamed.  Crowded  in  the  cabin  of  the  May- 
P'lower,  or  exposed  in  half-finished  huts,  sometimes  nearly  buried  with  snow- 
drifts, the  sufferers  had  little  chance  for  recovery;  and  when,  early  in  March, 
there  came  warm  days  and  abundance  of  sunshine,  forty-four  of  the  pas- 
sengers of  the  May-Flower  were  in  their  graves,  doomed  by  quick  consump- 
tion and  lung  fever.  Governor  Carver’s  son  died  soon  after  the  landing. 
Six  were  buried  in  December,  eight  in  January,  seventeen  in  February,  and 
thirteen  in  March.  At  one  time  there  were  only  sev'en  persons  who  had 


BUILDING  HOUSES  AT  PLYMOUTH. 


strength  enough  to  wait  upon  the  sick  and  bury  the  dead.  Early  in  April 
the  governor  died,  and  his  heart-broken  wife  soon  followed  him  to  the  grave. 
Yet  with  all  the  discouragements  of  that  dreadful  winter,  the  fidelity,  faith, 
and  fortitude  of  the  Pilgrims  never  faltered  ; and  when,  in  March,  the  sun 


Chap.  III. 


CONFERENCE  WITH  THE  INDIANS. 


209 


shined  warmly,  and  the  birds  came  and  sang  pleasantly,  and  the  sickness  was 
stayed,  the  living  chanted  songs  of  thanksgiving  to  God  for  his  manifold 
mercies. 

There  had  been,  earlier  than  this,  a cheering  voice  from  the  savages 
whom  the  settlers  so  much  dreaded.  One  day  in  February,  when  the  sick- 
ness was  at  its  height,  an  Indian  passed  through  the  hamlet  and  with  plain 
Saxon  words  cried,  “Welcome,  Englishmen!  welcome,  Englishmen!”  It 
was  Samoset,  a chief  who  had  come  from  the  island  of  Mohegan,  where 
Captain  Smith  first  landed,  off  the  coast  of  Maine,  and  where  he  had  learned  a 
few  English  words  from  the  sailors.  He  told  them  why  they  had  seen  so 
few  Indians.  It  was  because  three  or  four  years  before  a pestilence  had 
almost  depopulated  the  coast  from  Cape  Cod  to  the  Kennebec,  as  if  clearing 
the  way  for  Christians  to  plant  the  germs  of  civilization,  unmolested.  He 
came  several  days  in  succession,  bringing  with  him  other  Indians,  among 
them,  at  last,  Squanto,  whom  Hunt  had  carried  away  and  sold  in  Spain,  but 
who  had  been  sent  back.  That  time  Samoset  came  with  a message  from 
Massasoit,  a neighboring  king  of  the  Wampanoags,  of  whom  Squanto  was  a 
vassal,  desiring  an  interview  with  the  chief  of  the  new  comers. 

Governor  Carver  gladly  consented  to  hold  a conference  with  the  Indian 
monarch.  Massasoit  appeared  on  a neighboring  hill,  with  sixty  followers  all 
painted  and  plumed.  Winslow  was  sent  with  Squanto  to  meet  him,  bearing 
presents  from  the  governor,  whilst  Captain  Standish,  who  had  been  chosen 
military  commander  of  the  settlement,  remained  a little  way  off  with  several 
musketeers.  Massasoit  advanced  slowly  with  twenty  armed  followers,  leav- 
ing Winslow  behind  as  a hostage  or  pledge,  and  met  Standish  at  a dividing 
brook.  Then  the  dusky  men  were  conducted  by  the  soldier  to  a building, 
where  a rug  and  cushions  were  spread  for  the  king  and  his  courtiers.  Sitting 
there  in  state,  Massasoit  received  the  governor,  who  came  with  the  braying 
of  a trumpet  and  the  beating  of  a drum,  followed  by  a few  musketeers. 
After  salutations  and  feastings,  they  entered  into  a treaty  of  peace  and 
amity  (Squanto  acting  as  interpreter) ; and  the  sachem  agreed  to  send  mes- 
sengers to  neighboring  tribes  to  invite  them  to  come  and  make  similar 
treaties,  that  they  might  all  dwell  lovingly  with  the  pale-faces.  Rising  from 
the  rug,  the  old  chief,  stretching  forth  his  hand  with  dignity  and  pointing  to 
the  surrounding  country,  said,  in  substance  : “ Englishmen,  take  possession 
of  the  land,  for  there  is  no  one  left  to  occupy  it.  The  Great  Spirit  came  in 
his  anger  and  swept  the  people  from  the  face  of  the  earth.”  That  treaty 
was  kept  inviolate  for  forty-five  years 

When  the  Indians  had  departed,  the  Pilgrims  re-elected  Carver  governor 
of  the  colonv,  made  some  salutary  laws,  and  sent  the  May-Flower  home. 


210 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Hook  II. 


She  was  scarcely  out  of  sight,  when  the  governor  died  suddenly  from  the 
effects  of  a “ sun-stroke,”  and  William  Bradford  \yas  chosen  to  fill  his  place. 
As  the  season  advanced  hope  grew  stronger.  Game  was  found  to  be  plenti- 
ful in  the  forest,  and  fish  in  the  streams.  The  survivors  cultivated  the  land 
industriously,  and  reaped  abundantly.  In  a short  time  other  emigrants 
joined  them.  The  whole  community  was  free  as  air;  and  the  settlement, 
begun  with  so  much  suffering,  bereavement  and  discouragement,  was  made 
permanent.  Within  a few  months  after  the  arrival  of  the  May-Flower,  the 
Christian  men  and  women  who 
survived  that  winter  of  terrible 
experience,  planted  strong  and 
deep,  on  the  principles  of  justice 
and  the  rights  of  man,  the  foun- 
dations of  the  colony  and  the 
commonwealth  of  Massachusetts. 

With  the  prose  of  suffering 
there  was  a little  of  the  poetry 
of  social  romance  at  that  tearful 
planting  time.  Among  the  vic- 
tims of  the  famine  and  the  fever 
was  Rose  Standish.  Her  hus- 
band laid  her  body  tenderly 
in  the  earth,  and  feeling  that  it 
was  “ not  good  for  man  to  be 
alone,”  almost  immediately  turn- 
ed to  Priscilla  Mullins  for  conso- 
lation. She  was  a daughter  of 
William  Mullins,  one  of  the  May- 
Flower  passengers.  The  captain 
was  then  thirty-seven  years  of 
age,  and  Priscilla  had  but  lately 
bloomed  into  young  woman- 
hood. In  Standish’s  family  lived 
John  Alden,  a young  cooper  from  Southampton,  whom  the  Captain  sent  as 
an  ambassador  to  Priscilla’s  father  to  ask  his  consent  for  the  soldier  to  visit 
her  with  matrimonial  intent.  He  performed  the  duties  of  his  mission 
modestly  and  'faithfully.  The  father  readily  gave  his  consent,  adding, 
” But  Priscilla  must  be  consulted.”  She  was  summoned  to  the  room.  There 
sat  John  Alden,  whom  she  knew  well — a young  man  of  graceful  form,  a 
handsome  ruddy  face  and  sparkling  eyes,  and  of  almost  courtly  manners. 


RETURNING  FROM  THE  WEDDING. 


ENGLISH  SETTLERS  IN  AMERICA. 


Chap.  III. 


FIRST  MARRIAGE  IN  NEW  ENGLAND. 


21 1 


The  embassador  of  love  repeated  his  message  from  the  soldier.  The  calen- 
dar tells  us  it  was  leap-year,  when  English  maidens  had  the  privilege  of 
wooing.  “ Prithee,  John,”  said  Priscilla,  as  she  fixed  her  mischievous  eyes 
upon  the  face  of  the  young  diplomat,  “why  do  you  not  speak  for  yourself?” 
John  blushed,  bowed  and  retired,  for  he  was  faithful  to  his  trust.  But  his 
visit  was  soon  repeated  ; and  it  was  not  long  before  the  nuptials  of  the  couple 
were  celebrated  by  the  whole  community  excepting  Captain  Standish,  who 
could  not  readily  forgive  the  weakness  of  his  young  friend  in  surrendering 
at  the  first  assault  from  the  eyes  and  lips  of  a maiden. 

That  was  the  first  marriage  in  the  colony,  and  the  incidents  were  some- 
what dramatic,  for  John  Alden  went  to  his  nuptials  seated  on  a young  bull 
caparisoned  with  a piece  of  handsome  broadcloth.  Returning  from  the  wed- 
ding, he  led  the  bull  by  a ring  in  his  nose,  walking  by  his  side,  whilst  his 
bride  rode  like  a queen  upon  the  animal.  To  the  heart  of  Miles  Standish, 
Priscilla  upon  Taurus  was  a repetition  of  the  story  of  the  carrying  away  of 
Europa,  the  Phoenician  princess.  Such  is  the  story  of  tradition  and  poetry. 
History  gravely  tells  us  that  there  were  no  horned  cattle  in  the  colony  until 
some  time  after  this  marriage. 

From  time  to  time  the  memory  of  that  first  marriage  in  New  England 
has  been  revived  by  history  and  song.  A vivid  picture  of  it  is  given  in 
Longfellow’s  “ Courtship  of  Miles  Standish and  the  notable  wedding 
was  brought  to  mind  when,  in  April,  1874,  Mrs.  Phoebe  C.  Bailey  died  in 
Dover,  New  Hampshire,  at  the  age  of  ninety-one  years.  She  was  the  great- 
granddaughter  of  John  Alden  and  Priscilla  Mullins. 


CHAPTER  IV. 


Hudson’s  voyages  and  discoveries — block’s  explorations— charter  for  new  netherland 

GRANTED — DUTCH  TRADERS  ON  THE  HUDSON — TROUBLES  WITH  THE  ENGLISH — DUTCH  WEST 
INDIA  COMPANY  CHARTERED — PREPARATIONS  FOR  SETTLEMENT — AN  ENGLISH  INTRUDER — 
ARRIVAL  OF  WALLOONS  AT  MANHATTAN  — SETTLEMENT  ON  THE  DELAWARE  — POLITICAL 
ORGANIZATION  OF  NEW  NETHERLAND — NEW  AMSTERDAM  FOUNDED — FREEDOM  THERE. 

WE  have  already  considered  the  incidents  attending  the  discovery 
of  the  Hudson  River  and  the  country  on  its  borders  between  its 
mouth  and  the  site  of  Albany,  in  1609.  Let  us  now  view  the 
more  prominent  events  connected  with  the  establishment  of  a permanent 
settlement  there. 

In  the  year  1602,  Dutch  merchants  in  the  India  trade  formed  an  associa- 
tion, with  a capital  of  more  than  a million  dollars,  under  the  corporate  title 
of  “ The  Dutch  East  India  Company.”  The  government  of  Holland  gave 
them  the  exclusive  privilege  of  trading  in  the  Eastern  Seas  between  the 
Cape  of  Good  Hope  and  the  Straits  of  Magellan — that  is  to  say,  over  all  the 
Indian  and  South  Pacific  Oceans  between  Africa  and  America.  The  enter- 
prise was  so  profitable  that  an  application  was  made  to  the  government,  in 
1607,  for  the  incorporation  of  the  Dutch  West  India  Company  to  trade  along 
the  coast  of  Africa  from  the  tropics  to  the  Cape  of  Good  Hope,  and  from 
Newfoundland  to  Cape  Horn  along  the  continent  of  America.  But  political 
considerations  in  connection  with  Spain  deferred  the  issuing  of  a charter  for 
such  a company  for  several  years.  Meanwhile,  the  East  India  Company 
employed  Hudson  to  make  the  voyage,  which  resulted  in  the  discovery  of  a 
region  in  America  far  more  valuable  than  any  to  which  a northwestern  pas- 
•sage  to  India  would  have  led. 

The  report  that  the  newly-discovered  region  abounded  with  bears, 
beavers,  otters,  and  other  fur-bearing  animals,  excited  the  keenest  cupidity 
of  the  Dutch,  for  they  had  recently  tasted  the  pleasures  of  a profitable  fur 
trade  which  they  had  opened  with  Northern  Russia.  The  Half-Moon, 
Hudson’s  discovery  ship,  had  returned  in  the  autumn  of  1609.  In  the  fol- 
lowing spring  she  was  fitted  out  with  cheap  trinkets  and  other  articles  suit- 
able for  traffic  with  the  natives,  and,  with  a part  of  her  old  crew,  sailed  from 


Chap.  IV. 


FIRST  SHIP  BUILT  AT  NEW  YORK. 


213 


the  Texel  in  the  early  summer  for  the  “ River  of  the  Mountains.”  She  was 
sent  by  private  adventurers,  some  of  them  directors  of  the  Dutch  East 
India  Company,  to  trade  with  the  savages  for  peltries  and  furs.  The  island 
of  Manhattan,  at  the  mouth  of  the  river,  was  so  well  adapted  for  commer- 
cial purposes  that  it  was  made  the  central  point,  where  the  treasures  of  the 
forests  and  the  streams,  gathered  in  the  interior  from  the  Delaware  to  the 
Housatonic  and  northward  to  the  Mohawk,  were  collected  for  shipment  to 
Holland. 

Among  the  bold  navigators  who  came  from  Holland  to  Manhattan  was 
Adrien  Block.  His  vessel  was  the  Tigress.  Late  in  the  autumn  of  1613, 
when  she  was  laden  with  bear  skins  and  was  about  to  depart  for  Amsterdam, 
she  accidentally  took  fire  and  was  burned  to  a useless  wreck.  The  Indians 
kindly  offered  the  shelter  of  wigwams  to  the  Dutchmen,  but  they,  regarding 


BURNING  OF  THE  TIGRESS. 


them  too  frail  to  keep  out  the  winds  and  snows,  built  for  themselves  rude  log 
huts  where  the  warehouses  of  Beaver  street  now  stand,  and  went  cheerily  at 
work  to  construct  a new  vessel.  Before  spring,  the  oaks  that  sheltered  black 
bears  on  the  wooded  slopes  where  the  “bulls”  of  Wall  street  now  contend 
with  bruins  in  financial  warfare,  were  converted  into  a trim-built  and  staunch 
yacht  of  sixteen  tons.  They  named  her  Onrnst — “ Restless  ” — a title  that 
seems  prophetic  of  that  unresting  activity  which  now  marks  the  island  of 
Manhattan.  The  little  hamlet  then  built,  and  the  vessel  there  constructed, 
were  the  fruitful  seeds  of  the  great  commonwealth  of  New  York. 


214 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  II. 


Early  in  the  spring  of  1614,  Block  sailed  from  Manhattan  in  the  Onrust 
through  the  narrow,  turbulent  and  dangerous  strait  of  Hell  Gate  into  Long 
Island  Sound.  He  discovered  and  explored  the  rivers  now  known  as  the 
Housatonic,  Connecticut,  and  Thames;  anchored  in  the  bay  at  New  Haven; 
touched  at  Montauk  Point  on  the  eastern  end  of  Long  Island,  and  landed 
upon  a small  island  further  eastward  which  Verazzani  had  discovered  almost 
a century  before,  but  which  has  ever  since  borne  the  name  of  Block,  given 
to  it  by  his  countrymen.  He  then  visited  the  shores  of  the  main  and  the 
islands  from  Narragansett  Bay  around  to  Nahant  beyond  Boston  Harbor. 
There  he  found  the  inhabitants  numerous  ; for  the  plague,  already  mentioned, 
that  swept  along  the  coast  three  or  four  years  later,  had  not  yet  appeared. 
They  were  “ extremely  well-looking,  but  timid  and  shy  of  Christians.” 
There  the  Onrust  fell  in  with  the  Fortune,  commanded  by  Block’s  friend, 
Hendrick  Christiansen,  who  was  about  to  sail  for  Holland.  Block  left  his 
own  vessel  in  charge  of  another  navigator  and  sailed  for  Amsterdam  with 
his  friend,  to  report  to  his  employers. 

Block’s  report  further  stimulated  the  commercial  enterprise  of  Dutch 
merchants,  and  they  hastened  to  avail  themselves  of  an  ordinance  which  the 
States-General  or  government  of  Holland  had  recently  passed.  It  provided 
that  whoever  shall,  from  this  time  forward,  discover  any  new  passage,  haven, 
lands,  or  places,  shall  have  the  exclusive  right  of  navigating  to  the  same  for 
four  voyages.  The  merchants  concerned  in  Block’s  discoveries  hastened  to 
form  an  association,  and  took  immediate  steps  to  profit  by  the  privileges 
offered  by  that  ordinance.  They  employed  an  expert  draughtsman,  prob- 
ably under  the  direction  of  Block,  to  construct  a map  of  the  newly-discov- 
ered regions,  and  appointed  a deputation  to  go  to  the  Hague,  the  seat  of 
government,  to  obtain  the  special  license  to  trade  in  these  regions  without 
.interference. 

At  the  Hague,  the  finest  city  of  the  Netherlands,  and  the  residence  of 
the  Counts  of  Holland  for  four  hundred  years,  may  be  seen  a pile  of  buildings 
upon  an  artificial  island  irregular  and  quaint  in  appearance.  They  were 
erected  at  different  periods,  and  inclose  a vast  quadrangle  paved  with  small 
yellow  bricks.  There  was  the  palace  of  those  Counts.  Its  great  hall,  wherein 
hung  trophies  of  Dutch  valor  and  conquest,  is  now  used  as  a repository  of 
the  archives  of  Holland.  In  a superbly-decorated  room  in  the  Binnenhof  or 
inner  court,  the  States-General  held  their  meetings.  To  that  sumptuous 
apartment  went  the  deputies  of  the  Amsterdam  Company  and  gave,  in  a 
brief  narrative  of  Block’s  discoveries,  their  reasons  for  asking  for  the  special 
privilege.  They  were  received  by  “twelve  high  and  mighty  lords  ” of  the 
great  council,  who  were  sitting  around  an  oval  table.  Among  them  was  the 


Chap.  IV. 


ENTERPRISE  OF  DUTCH  TRADERS. 


215 


incorruptible  patriot  John  Van  Olden  Barneveldt,  the  grand-pensionary  or 
chief  magistrate  of  Holland,  who,  five  years  later,  was  beheaded  in  that 
court  as  a traitor,  the  victim  of  his  jealous,  malicious  and  unscrupulous 
prince.  Block  was  probably  one  of  the  deputies.  The  map  spoken  of  was 
spread  upon  the  table  ; the  countries  were  described,  and  their  value  as 
parts  of  the  territories  of  the  Dutch  were  fully  set  forth.  The  States-Gen- 
eral  gladly  complied  with  the  wishes  of  the  Company,  and  on  the  iith  of 
October,  1614,  a charter  was  given  them,  duly  signed  and  sealed,  by  which 
the  petitioners  were  granted  the  usual  privileges  of  the  ordinance.  The  ter- 
ritory included  in  the  charter,  and  which  was  defined  as  lying  between  Vir- 
ginia and  New  France — between  the  parallels  of  40°  and  45° — was  called 
New  Netherland. 

At  the  expiration  of  the  charter  at  the  beginning  of  1618,  the  Amster- 
dam Company  applied  for  its  renewal.  The  privilege  was  denied,  because 
the  States-General  contemplated  the  issuing  of  a more  comprehensive  and 
lasting  patent  to  a West  India  Company.  Meanwhile,  the  Onrust,  which 
Block  had  left  in  charge  of  Cornelius  Hendricksen,  had  entered  and  explored 
Delaware  Bay  and  River,  probably  as  far  up  as  the  Falls,  near  Trenton  ; and 
on  the  site  of  Philadelphia  her  commander  had  ransomed  three  Dutch 
traders,  who  had  fallen  into  the  hands  of  the  Indians.  Efforts  were  made 
to  obtain  a four  years  trading  charter  for  that  region  also,  but  the  States- 
General,  considering  the  domain  as  a part  of  the  province  of  Virginia,  would 
not  grant  one.  The  directors  of  New  Netherland  then  prosecuted  their 
trading  enterprise  upon  the  borders  of  the  Hudson  with  increased  vigor. 
They  had  already  built  a fort  on  an  island  just  below  the  site  of  Albany. 
They  now  enlarged  their  storehouse  at  Manhattan,  and  made  the  little  ham- 
let a social  village.  The  traders  went  over  the  pine-barrens  into  the  Mohawk 
Valley  and  became  acquainted  with  the  powerful  Iroquois  league  of  Five 
Confederated  Nations.  They  built  a new  fort  on  the  main  at  the  mouth  of 
the  Tawasentha,  now  Norman’s  Kill,  a little  below  Albany,  where  a treaty 
of  friendship  was  made  with  the  Five  Nations,  and  which  w'as  kept  inviolate 
until  New  Netherland  passed  into  the  possession  of  the  English,  and  long 
afterwards.  It  was  a wise  measure,  for  that  confederacy  was  strong  enough 
to  have  swept  from  the  face  of  the  earth  all  European  intruders.  Their 
power  was  felt,  as  w^e  have  observed,  from  the  St.  Lawrence  to  the  Gulf 
of  Mexico 


“ The  fierce  Adirondac  had  fled  from  their  wrath, 
The  Hurons  been  swept  from  their  merciless  path, 
Around,  the  Ottawas,  like  leaves  had  been  strown. 
And  the  Lake  of  the  Fries  struck  silent  and  lone. 

15 


2i6 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  II. 


“The  Lenapes,  once  lords  of  the  valley  and  hill, 

Made  women,  bend  low  at  their  conqueror’s  will  ; 

By  the  far  Mississippi  the  Illini  shrank, 

When  the  trail  of  the  Tortoise  was  seen  on  the  bank. 

“On  the  hills  of  New  England  the  Pequod  turned  pale, 

When  the  howl  of  the  Wolf  s%velled  at  night  on  the  gale  ; 

And  the  Cherokee  shook,  in  his  green  smiling  bowers. 

When  the  foot  of  the  Bear  stampt  his  carpet  of  flowers.” 

Street's  “ FrontenacT 


These  Hollanders  were  so  re- 
mote from  the  Jamestown  set- 
tlement, and  all  New  England 
being  a wilderness  untrodden  by 
any  European  resident,  that  they 
were  not  disturbed.  The  Plym- 
outh Company  complained  that 
they  were  intruders  on  their  do- 
main ; and  King  James  growled  ; 
and  a word  of  warning  was  given 
by  Captain  Dermer  of  an  Eng- 
lish ship  which,  one  fine  morning 
in  June,  1619,  while  on  its  way 
to  Virginia,  sailed  through  Long 
Island  Sound,  and  lost  an  an- 
chor in  its  encounter  with  the 
eddies  of  Hell  Gate.  That  com- 
mander thought  he  was  the  first 
discoverer  of  that  “ most  danger- 
ous cataract  ” and  the  flowery 
islands  between  which  he  sailed, 
but  when  he  was  fairly  out  upon 
the  Bay  of  New  York,  he  saw 
the  smoke  of  cottages  on  Man- 
hattan, and  was  .saluted  by  Hol- 
landers. He  did  not  stop  then  to  talk  to  the  intruders,  but  on  his  return 
he  felt  it  to  be  his  duty  to  go  in  and  warn  the  traffickers  to  leave  his 
majesty’s  domain  as  quickly  as  possible.  “We  found  no  Englishmen  here, 
and  hope  we  have  not  offended,”  replied  the  good-natured  Dutchmen,  and 
went  on  smoking  their  pipes,  planting  their  gardens,  and  catching  beavers 
and  otters,  as  if  they  had  never  heard  the  voice  of  Captain  Dermer,  the 


Chap.  IV. 


THE  WEST  INDIA  COMPANY. 


217 


“ loving  subject  ” of  the  king  of  England.  The  sounds  of  royal  bluster  that 
came  occasionally  from  Great  Britain  did  not  deter  the  States-General  from 
helping  their  “ loyal  subjects”  in  New  Netherland,  and  they  proceeded  to 
charter  the  “ Dutch  West  India  Company,”  making  it  a great  commercial 
monopoly  by  giving  it  almost  regal  powers  to  colonize,  govern,  and  defend, 
not  only  that  little  domain  on  the  Hudson,  but  the  whole  unoccupied  coasts 
of  America  from  Newfoundland  to  Cape  Horn,  and  the  western  coasts  of 
Africa  from  the  Cape  of  Good  Hope  far  northward. 

That  charter  contained  all  the  guarantees  of  freedom  in  social,  political, 
and  religious  life  necessary  to  the  founding  of  a free  state.  Republicanism 
was  recognized  as  the  true  system  of  government,  and  home,  in  its  broadest 
and  purest  sense,  as  the  prime  element  of  political  strength.  No  stranger 
was  to  be  questioned  concerning  his  nativity  or  his  creed  as  matters 
which  concerned  the  state.  “ Do  you  wish  to  build,  to  plant,  and  to  become 
a citizen?”  was  the  sum  of  their  catechism  when  a new  comer  ajjpeared. 
If  the  answer  should  be  satisfactory,  he  was  to  be  welcomed.  That  charter 
was  granted  on  the  3d  of  June,  1621,  at  the  time  when  the  stricken  Pilgrims 
at  Plymouth,  on  the  coast  of  Massachusetts,  were  cultivating  their  first  fruit- 
gardens  and  cornfields. 

The  government  of  the  West  India  Company  was  vested  in  five  separate 
chambers  of  managers,  composed  of  members  in  different  parts  of  Holland. 
General  executive  powers  were  entrusted  to  a board  of  nineteen  delegates, 
of  whom  about  one-half  were  to  reside  in  Amsterdam,  and  one  was  to  repre- 
sent the  States-General.  The  government  agreed  to  furnish  the  Company,  in 
case  of  war,  with  sixteen  armed  ships,  of  three  hundred  tons  burden  each, 
to  assist  in  maintaining  their  rights, — these,  with  an  equal  number  of  the 
Company’s  ships-of-war  to  be  under  the  command  of  an  admiral  appointed 
by  the  States-General.  Whilst  the  Company  might  make  conquests  of  terri- 
tories and  treaties  with  native  chiefs  at  their  own  risk,  they  were  required  to 
submit  the  instructions  to  their  governors  to  the  approval  of  the  home 
government ; and  their  officers  were  all  required  to  take  the  oath  of  alle- 
giance to  the  States-General. 

It  was  two  years  after  obtaining  this  charter  before  the  Company  was 
organized.  It  was  an  armed  commercial  monopoly,  the  chief  object  of 
which  was  traffic  and  the  humbling  of  Spain  and  Portugal,  and  not  coloniza- 
tion. Meanwhile,  the  Plymouth  Company  had  obtained  the  coveted  new 
charter  already  mentioned.  By  it  their  king  conferred  upon  them  almost 
regal  powers.  Without  the  consent  of  the  Plymouth  Company,  no  ships 
might  enter  any  harbor  on  the  American  coast  between  Newfoundland 
and  the  latitude  of  Philadelphia;  not  a fish  might  be  caught  within  three 


2I8 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  li. 


miles  of  the  American  coast ; not  a skin  trafficked  for  in  the  forests,  nor  an 
emigrant  live  upon  the  soil.  That  e.xtraordinary  charter  had  been  signed 
by  the  king  a week  before  the  arriv^al  of  the  May-Flower  off  Cape  Cod,  with 
the  Pilgrims  ; and  that  little  colony  who  had  braved  the  terrors  of  the 
Atlantic  for  the  sake  of  freedom,  were  subjected,  prospectively,  to  an  almost 
irresponsible  despotism.  The  House  of  Commons,  alarmed  because  of  this 
delegation  of  despotic  power  to  a grasping  company  of  traders,  presented 
the  patent  as  the  first  of  “ the  public  grievances  of  the  kingdom.”  The 
P'rench  ambassador  in  London  protested  against  it  because  Canada  was 
included  within  the  limits  of  the  Plymouth  Company’s  charter;  and  a little 
later  the  captain  of  a French  vessel,  anchored  in  the  mouth  of  the  Hudson 
River,  attempted  to  set  up  the  arms  of  France  there,  and  take  possession  of 
the  country  in  the  name  of  his  king.  The  Dutch,  too,  were  concerned  in 
the  matter,  for  if  the  powers  granted  to  the  Plymouth  Company  might  be 
exercised  without  hindrance.  New  Netherland  would  be  useless  to  them. 

In  defiance  of  the  House  of  Commons,  King  James  upheld  the  mo- 
nopoly. He  scolded  the  representatives  of  the  people,  paid  no  attention  to 
the  Frenchman’s  protest,  and  reminded  the  States-General  of  Holland  that 
Dutchmen  were  unlawfully  seated  upon  the  domain  of  a chartered  English 
Company.  The  Hollanders  at  the  Hague  were  as  little  moved  by  the  covert 
threats  of  the  British  monarch  as  were  those  at  Manhattan  by  Captain 
Dermer’s  warning.  The  complaint,  however,  had  a useful  result.  It  induced 
the  West  India  Company,  before  its  final  organization,  to  take  measures  for 
securing  the  rights  of  eminent  domain  in  New  Netherland,  in  accordance 
with  the  principles  of  English  policy  which  declared  that  first  occupation 
gave  those  rights.  So  it  was  that  the  attention  of  that  powerful  Company 
was  called  from  traffic  to  the  founding  of  a permanent  agricultural  colony  in 
America. 

At  that  time  there  were  thousands  of  refugees  from  persecution  in  the 
Netherlands.  Among  these  were  many  of  French  extraction,  who  spoke  the 
French  language,  called  Walloons.  They  had  inhabited  the  southern  Belgic 
provinces  of  Hainault,  Namur,  Luxemburg,  Limburg,  and  a part  of  the 
bishopric  of  Liege.  When  the  northern  provinces  of  the  Netherlands 
formed  their  union  more  than  forty  years  before,  these  southern  provinces, 
whose  inhabitants  were  mostly  Roman  Catholics,  declined  to  join  the  con- 
federation. There  were  many  Protestants  in  those  provinces,  and  they  were 
made  to  feel,  in  all  its  rigor,  the  lash  of  persecution  in  the  hands  of  the 
Spaniards.  Thousands  of  them  fled  to  Holland,  where  strangers  of  every 
race  and  creed  were  welcomed.  There  were  the  Walloons,  a hardy,  indus- 
trious, and  skillful  race  of  men  and  women,  who  introduced  many  useful  arts 


Chap.  IV. 


EMIGRATION  FROM  HOLLAND. 


219 


into  their  adopted  country.  There  they  established  their  peculiar  mode  of 
public  worship,  and  were  soon  ranked  among  the  most  thrifty,  honest,  and 
religious  inhabitants.  They  were  numerous  in  Amsterdam  and  Leyden,  and 
were  on  friendly  terms  with  the  Puritan  refugees  from  England.  Like  those 
Puritans  they  heard,  from  time  to  time,  the  enticing  stories  about  the  beauty 
and  fertility  of  Virginia,  and  some  of  them  desired  to  emigrate  to  America. 
They  applied  to  the  British  ambassador  at  the  Hague  for  permission  and 
encouragement.  He  referred  them  to  his  king,  and  James  submitted  the 
matter  to  the  London  Company.  The  latter  were  not  liberal  enough  in  their 
proffered  conditions  to  induce  the  Walloons  to  go.  The  States-General  hear- 
ing of  the  movement  commended  them  and  their  project  to  the  West  India 
Company.  The  latter  perceived  the  great  advantage  which  such  emigrants 
would  be  to  them  in  founding  a permanent  industrial  colony  in  New  Nether- 
land,  and  took  measures  immediately  to  secure  them.  An  agreement  was 
made  with  several  families,  and  in  the  spring  of  1623,  the  emigrants  were 
ready  for  departure  for  their  new  home. 

The  Company,  anxious  to  commence  their  settlement  with  a sufficient 
number  of  willing  hands,  fitted  out  the  Nezv  Nctherland,  a ship  of  two  hun- 
dred and  sixty  tons  burden,  in  which  thirty  families,  consisting  of  one  hun- 
dred and  ten  men,  women  and  children,  embarked.  They  were  provided 
with  agricultural  implements,  cows,  horses,  sheep  and  swine,  and  a sufficient 
quantity  of  household  furniture  to  make  them  comfortable.  The  command 
of  the  ship  was  given  to  Cornelius  Jacobsen  May,  of  Hoorn,  who  was  to 
remain  in  New  Netherland  as  first  director  or  governor.  His  lieutenant  was 
Adrien  Joris.  The  vessel  sailed  from  the  Texel  early  in  March,  and  taking 
the  long  and  tedious  southern  route  by  way  of  the  Canaries  and  the  West 
Indies,  to  avoid  the  storms  of  the  northern  Atlantic,  they  did  not  reach  their 
destined  haven  until  the  beginning  of  May,  where  they  found  the  French 
vessel  above  mentioned  lying  at  anchor.  The  yacht  Mackerel  had  just  come 
down  the  Hudson.  With  two  pieces  of  cannon  taken  from  the  fort  at  Man- 
hattan, she  compelled  the  Frenchman  to  desist,  and  convoyed  his  vessel  out 
to  sea.  He  went  round  to  the  Delaware  on  the  same  errand,  and  received 
similar  treatment  from  the  Dutch  traders  who  were  seated  on  its  banks, 
when  he  sailed  for  France.  With  this  ridiculous  feat  ended  attempts  of  the 
French  to  assert  jurisdiction  below  the  forty-fifth  parallel. 

On  a beautiful  morning  in  May  the  Walloons  landed  from  the  Neiu 
Netherland,  in  small  boats,  upon  the  rocky  shore  where  Castle  Garden  now 
is.  They  made  a picturesque  appearance  as  they  ascended  the  bank  in  their 
quaint  costume,  every  man  carrying  some  article  of  domestic  use,  and  many 
women  each  carrying  a babe  or  small  child  in  her  arms.  They  were  cor- 


220 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  II. 


LANDING  OF  THE  WALLOONS. 


dially  welcomed  by  the  resident  traders  and  friendly  Indians,  and  were 
feasted  under  a tent  made  of  sails  stretched  between  several  trees.  Under 
that  tent  a Christian  teacher,  who  accompanied  the  settlers,  offered  up 
fervent  thanksgivings  to  Almighty  God  for  his  preserving  care  during  the 
long  voyage,  and  implored  His  blessing  upon  the  great  undertaking  before 
them.  May  then  read  his  commission,  which  made  him  first  director  of  New 
Netherland,  and  formally  assumed  the  governorship  of  the  colony  and 
country. 

Traditions  have  told  us  that  these  emigrants  were  immediately  scattered 
to  different  points  to  form  settlements,  and  so  to  secure  a wide  domain  for 
the  West  India  Company.  Some,  it  is  said,  settled  on  Long  Island  and 
founded  the  City  of  Brooklyn  ; others  went  up  the  Connecticut  River  to  a 
point  near  the  site  of  Hartford,  and  built  Fort  Good  Hope;  others  planted 
themselves  in  the  present  Ulster  County  in  New  York,  and  others  founded 
Albany,  where  the  Dutch  had  erected  a military  work  and  named  it  Fort 
Orange.  Others,  it  is  said,  went  to  the  Delaware  and  began  a settlement  at 
the  mouth  of  Timber  Creek,  on  the  east  side  of  the  river,  a few  miles  below 
the  site  of  Philadelphia,  and  built  a small  fortification  which  they  named 
Fort  Nassau.  The  settlers  engaged  in  this  enterprise,  it  is  said,  were  four 


Chap.  IV. 


FORT  AMSTERDAM. 


221 


young  couples  who  were  married  on  ship-board,  and  eight  seamen  who 
managed  a little  yacht  that  conveyed  them  to  the  South  River,  as  the  Dela- 
ware was  called.  This  was  to  distinguish  it  from  the  North  River,  as  the 
Hudson  was  then  called,  and  which  yet  retains  that  name. 

When  May’s  lieutenant,  Joris,  returned  to  Amsterdam  with  a ship  laden 
with  furs  worth  over  ten  thousand  dollars,  and  reported  that  the  settlers 
were  “ getting  bravely  along,”  the  Company  were  delighted,  and  sent  out 
ships  with  cattle,  horses,  sheep,  swine,  farming  implements  and  seeds  for 
their  use,  and  more  emigrants.  Political  affairs  in  Europe  were  now  favor- 
able to  the  enterprise.  King  James  of  England,  angered  because  of  the 
failure  of  his  son  Charles  to  win  the  hand  of  a Spanish  princess,  had  leagued 
with  the  Dutch  against  Spain.  At  his  death,  his  son  became  King  Charles 
the  First,  and  he  renewed  the  league  with  the  States-General  in  a still 
stronger  bond.  This  alliance  with  the  British  sovereign  promising  non- 
interference, on  his  part,  in  the  growth  of  a permanent  colony  in  New 
Netherland,  the  West  India  Company  proceeded  to  lay  the  political  founda- 
tions of  a state.  They  commissioned  Peter  Minuit  director-general  or  gov- 
ernor of  the  colony,  with  a council  of  seven  men,  a secretary  of  state,  who 
was  also  keeper  of  the  Company’s  accounts,  and  a schoiit  or  sheriff,  who  was 
also  public  prosecutor  or  manager  of  the  revenue.  The  council  was  invested 
with  all  local  legislative,  judicial  and  executive  powers,  subject  to  the  juris- 
diction of  the  Amsterdam  College  or  Chamber  of  Nineteen.  The  Council 
were  empowered  to  administer  justice  in  all  criminal  cases  to  the  extent  of 
imprisonment,  but  each  capital  offender  “ must  be  sent,  with  his  sentence,  to 
Holland.” 

Governor  Minuit  arrived  at  Manhattan  in  the  ship  Sea-Mew,  at  the 
beginning  of  May,  1626.  So  soon  as  he  was  installed  in  office,  he  opened 
negotiations  with  the  Indians  for  the  purchase  of  the  island,  so  as  to  procure 
a more  valid  title  to  its  possession  than  that  of  discovery  and  occupation. 
It  was  estimated  that  it  contained  about  twenty-two  thousand  acres  of  land, 
and  it  was  purchased  for  the  West  India  Company  for  the  sum  of  about 
twenty-four  dollars.  A fort  was  immediately  staked  out  by  the  engineer 
Frederick,  at  the  lower  point  of  the  island,  where  the  “Battery”  and  its 
stately  trees  now  are,  the  plan  of  which  called  for  a work  faced  with  stone 
and  having  four  angles,  by  which  the  bay  in  front,  and  the  East  and  Hudson 
Rivers  on  its  flanks,  might  be  commanded  by  cannon.  Before  the  work  was 
finished,  it  was  named  Fort  Amsterdam,  and  afterward  the  city  that  grew 
up  there  was  called  New  Amsterdam.  It  retained  that  name  until  the  prov- 
ince was  surrendered  to  the  English,  when  it  received  the  title  of  New  York. 
The  States-General  constituted  the  province  a county  of  Holland  with  an 


222 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  II. 


armorial  distinction  of  a count.  Its  great  seal  bore  the  device  of  a shield, 
with  an  escutcheon  enclosed  in  a chain,  emblematic  of  union,  and  bearing 
the  figure  of  a beaver.  The  crest  was  the  coronet  of  a count. 

While  Fort  Amsterdam  was  a-building  an  event  occurred,  the  sad  effects 
of  which  were  felt  long  afterwards.  Two  adult  Indians  and  a small  boy,  of 
a tribe  in  Westchester  county,  went  from  their  homes  to  the  Dutch  settle- 
ment with  beaver-skins  to  barter  with  the  Hollanders  at  the  fort.  They 
followed  the  beaten  trail  along  the  East  River  to  Kip’s  Bay  (foot  of  Thirty- 
fourth  street),  where  it  diverged  westward  to  the  pond  and  marsh  formerly 
known  as  The  Collect,  on  the  borders  of  which,  on  Centre  street.  New  York, 
the  Halls  of  Justice  or  the  “Tombs”  now  stand.  Near  that  pond,  three 
farm-servants  in  the  employ  of  Governor  Minuit,  robbed  the  Indians  of 
their  property  and  then  murdered  the  men.  The  boy  escaped.  He  vowed 
vengeance ; and  in  after  years,  when  he  was  a stalwart  brave,  he  fearfully 
executed  his  vow.  The  murder  was  unknown  to  the  Dutch  authorities  for  a 
long  time,  and  the  guilty  men  probably  escaped  punishment. 

When  the  stock  of  the  Dutch  West  India  Company  was  secured,  and  the 
several  boards  of  direction  were  chosen,  the  College  of  XIX  gave  to  the 
Amsterdam  Chamber  the  exclusive  management  of  the  affairs  of  the  prov- 
ince of  New  Netherland.  Brodhead  enumerates  among  the  prominent 
members  of  that  Chamber,  Jonas  Witsen,  Hendrick  Hamel,  Samuel  Godyn, 
John  de  Laet,  the  historian;  Killian  Van  Rensselair,  Michael  Pauw,  and 
Peter  Evertsen  Hulft.  The  names  of  these  men  were  identified  with  the 
first  European  possession  of  the  States  of  New  York,  New  Jersey,  Delaware, 
Pennsylvania,  and  Connecticut.  The  Company  took  measures  immediately 
to  secure  their  title  to  the  domain  by  more  extended  actual  occupation. 
They  had  taken  possession  of  the  country  before  their  final  organization,  by 
virtue  of  their  charter,  because  they  knew  how  jealous  were  the  English  ; and 
to  give  a show  of  actual  occupation,  they  had  sent  trading  vessels  which  bore 
instructions  to  the  officers  at  Manhattan  and  on  the  North  River,  and,  as  we 
have  seen,  proceeded  to  build  fortifications. 

Within  seventeen  years  after  the  discoveries  of  Hudson,  the  foundations 
of  the  great  commonwealth  of  New  York  were  laid  by  families,  most  of 
whom  were  voluntary  exiles  from  their  native  land  for  the  sake  of  freedom 
of  thought  and  action.  These  were  the  first  seeds  of  the  state.  To  these 
were  added,  at  the  season  of  germination,  noble  plants  from  Holland,  of 
genuine  Hollanders,  who  brought  with  them  those  principles  of  toleration 
which  lie  at  the  foundations  of  a truly  Christian  state  and  give  it  sustenance. 
The  community  of  their  capital  was  very  soon  as  cosmopolitan  as  their 
mother  city  of  Amsterdam,  of  which  Andrew  Marvell  quaintly  wrote: 


Chap.  IV. 


NEW  AMSTERDAM. 


223 


“ Hence  Amsterdam,  Turk,  Christian,  Pagan,  Jew, 
Staple  of  sects  and  mint  of  schism  grew  ; 

That  bank  of  conscience  where  not  one  so  strange 
Opinion,  but  finds  credit  and  exchange  ; 

In  vain  for  Catholics  ourselves  we  bear — 

The  Universal  Church  is  only  there.” 


New  Amsterdam  gave  to  the  state  and  nation  a race  in  whose  veins 
courses  the  blood  of  Teuton,  Saxon,  Celt  and  Gaul.  The  colonists  from 
Holland  exhibited,  from  the  beginning,  a more  enlarged  vision  of  the  rights 
of  conscience  and  respect  for  the  dignity  of  personal  freedom,  than  any 
other  of  the  early  American  settlers.  Their  passion  for  far-reaching  com- 
merce and  adventurous  enterprise  has  ever  hovered  over  Manhattan  Island 
like  a tutelar  deity,  during  all  its  social  and  political  vicissitudes,  and  has 
made  New  York  City  the  commercial  emporium  of  the  Western  Continent. 


SEAL  OF  NEW  NETHERLAND. 


CHAPTER  V. 


THE  PLYMOUTH  COMPANY  IN  PARLIAMENT — FIRST  DEBATE  IN  PARLIAMENT  ON  AMERICAN  AFFAIRS 
— GRANTS  OF  TERRITORY  EAST  OF  MASSACHUSETTS — SIR  WILLIAM  ALEXANDER’S  DOMAIN- 
EMIGRATION  PLAN  OF  GORGES  AND  MASON — SETTLERS  IN  NEW  HAMPSHIRE — DISSOLUTION  OF 
THE  PLYMOUTH  COMPANY — GORGES  GOVERNOR-GENERAL  OF  NEW  ENGLAND — FOUNDING  OF 
THE  COLONY  OF  NEW  HAMPSHIRE — GEORGE  CALVERT  (LORD  BALTIMORE)  SEEKS  A CHARTER 
FOR  MARYLAND — HIS  SON  RECEIVES  IT — ITS  CHARACTER — VOYAGE  OF  EMIGRANTS  TO  MARY- 
LAND— FIRST  SETTLEMENT  IN  MARYLAND,  AND  FOUNDING  OF  ITS  CAPITAL. 

HILST  French  and  English  colonists  from  free  Holland  were 
planting  settlements  on  the  Delaware  and  Hudson  Rivers  and 
the  borders  of  Cape  Cod  Bay,  a seed-time  had  again  begun  on 
that  portion  of  the  soil  of  New  England  now  covered  by  the  States  of  New 
Hampshire  and  Maine.  Sir  Ferdinando  Gorges  was  the  chief  promoter  of 
this  cultivation.  He  had  been  the  controlling  spirit  in  the  Plymouth  Com- 
pany, from  the  beginning,  and  the  chief  instrument  in  procuring  the  despotic 
charter  for  the  Plymouth  Council.  P'or  its  existence  and  powers  he  con- 
tended fearlessly  before  the  hostile  Parliament,  standing  firmly  upon  the 
king’s  prerogative.  In  that  contest  he  had  a powerful  coadjutor  in  Sir 
George  Calvert,  a representative  of  Yorkshire,  and  who  afterward  became 
the  founder  of  Maryland.  Educated  at  Oxford  ; taught  wisdom  by  travels  ; 
fostered  in  public  life  by  Sir  Robert  Cecil,  and  through  him  advanced  to  the 
honors  of  knighthood  ; employed  as  one  of  the  Secretaries  of  State  when 
the  Pilgrims  were  preparing  to  depart  for  America,  and  being  possessed  of  a 
handsome  person,  winning  manners  and  fluency  of  speech,  he  was  very 
popular  among  all  classes,  and  had  been  elected  to  a seat  in  the  House  of 
Commons  by  an  immense  majority.  He  had  sought  refuge  from  controversy 
(privately  at  first)  in  the  bosom  of  the  Roman  Catholic  Church.  As  that 
Church  paid  all  due  deference  to  the  king  as  sovereign,  it  was  not  regarded 
with  disfavor  by  James,  and  Sir  George  was  an  ever-welcome  guest  at  the 
palace,  for  he  was  a thorough  courtier. 

It  was  a notable  scene  in  the  House  of  Commons,  then  convened  for  the 
first  time  in  seven  years,  when  Gorges  appeared  before  that  body  to  show 
cause  why  the  charter  should  not  be  annulled,  or  its  despotic  powers  abridged. 


Chap.  V. 


KING  JAMES  AND  EDWARD  COKE. 


225 


The  king  was  present  to  defend  his  prerogative  if  it  should  be  assailed. 
Gorges  and  Calvert  were  opposed  by  Sir  Edwin  Sandys,  the  wise  statesman 
and  friend  of  Virginia,  and  by  the  then  venerable  Sir  Edward  Coke,  who 
had  been  Lord  Chief-Justice  of  England.  Coke  was  a member  of  Par- 
liament and  of  the  Privy  Council,  and  he  then  began  his  famous  contest  with 
the  king,  which  resulted  in  a curious  exhibition  of  wrath  and  despotism  on 
the  part  of  James.  Coke  had  procured  the  opposition  of  Parliament  to  the 
proposed  marriage  of  the  Prince  of  Wales  to  a Spanish  princess,  as  danger- 
ous to  Protestantism  in  England.  The  angered  king  denounced  the  address 
which  the  House  of  Commons  presented  to  him  on  the  subject  as  an  unlaw- 
ful interference  with  his  prerogative  ; mentioned  the  name  of  Coke,  the 
author  of  it,  as  a culprit ; and  in  a letter  to  the  Speaker,  declared  his  inten- 
tion to  “ punish  any  man’s  misdemeanor 
in  Parliament  as  well  during  the  sitting 
as  after.”  This  threat  was  aimed  at  Coke, 
who  immediately  moved  a protestation  for 
the  privilege  of  the  House,  setting  forth 
the  right  of  every  member  to  freedom  of 
speech,  and  like  “ freedom  from  all  im- 
peachment, imprisonment  or  molestation,” 
on  account  of  anything  said  or  done  in 
Parliament.  It  was  carried  and  entered  in 
the  journals.  On  hearing  of  this  act,  the 
king  immediately  prorogued  or  dissolved 
Parliament,  sent  for  the  journals  of  the 
House,  and  with  his  own  hand  tore  out  the 
offensive  record.  Then  he  caused  the 
arrest  of  Coke  and  others,  in  execution  of 
his  threat,  and  confined  him  in  the  Tower 
several  months,  when  he  was  released  on 
the  petition  of  Prince  Charles. 

In  the  matter  of  the  charter,  Sandys  pleaded  for  the  freedom  in  fishing 
and  of  general  commerce;  which  was  then  becoming  the  staple  of  wealth  for 
England.  “ The  fishermen  hinder  the  plantations,”  replied  Calvert ; “ they 
choke  the  harbors  with  their  ballast,  and  waste  the  forests  by  improvident 
use.  America  is  not  annexed  to  the  realm  nor  within  the  jurisdiction  of 
Parliament ; you  have  therefore  no  right  to  interfere.”  “ We  make  laws  for 
Virginia,”  said  another  member ; “ a bill  passed  by  the  Commons  and  the 
Lords,  if  it  receives  the  king’s  assent,  will  control  the  patent.”  Sir  Edward 
Coke  argued  with  numerous  references  to  the  statutes  of  the  realm,  that  as 


SIR  EDWARD  COKE. 


226 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Hook  II. 


the  charter  was  granted  without  regard  to  pre-existing  rights,  it  was  neces- 
sarily void.  This  attack  upon  his  prerogative  aroused  the  angry  monarch, 
who  was  sitting  near  the  Speaker’s  chair,  and  he  blurted  out  some  silly  words 
about  the  “ divine  right  of  kings,”  when  the  Commons,  in  defiance  of  his 
wrath,  passed  a bill  giving  freedom  to  commerce  in  spite  of  the  charter. 
That  bill  had  not  gone  through  all  the  forms  of  legislation  when  the  king 
broke  up  the  Parliament  for  reasons  just  mentioned. 

James,  in  the  exercise  of  his  prerogative,  issued  a proclamation  forbidding 
any  vessel  to  approach  the  shores  of  North  Virginia  without  the  special  con- 
sent of  the  Plymouth  Company.  The  Company  commissioned  P'rancis 
West  admiral  of  New  England,  and  sent  him  to  protect  their  chartered 
rights.  His  police  force  was  too  feeble  for  so  wide  a domain,  and  the  fisher- 
men, in  their  fast-sailing  shallops,  eluded  his  grasp.  The  next  Parliament 
proceeded  to  perfect  what  the  former  one  had  begun.  The  House  was  led 
by  Coke,  lately  released  from  the  Tower.  “ Your  patent,”  he  said  to  Gorges 
from  the  Speaker’s  chair,  “ contains  many  particulars  contrary  to  the  laws 
and  privileges  of  the  subject ; it  is  a monopoly,  and  the  ends  of  private  gain 
are  concealed  under  color  of  planting  a colony.”  In  debate,  he  said,  “ Shall 
none  visit  the  sea-coast  for  fishing?  This  is  to  make  a monopoly  upon  the 
seas,  which  want  to  be  free.  If  you,  alone,  are  to  pack  and  dry  fish,  you 
attempt  a monopoly  of  the  wind  and  sun.”  The  bill  passed,  but  never 
received  the  signature  of  the  king.  The  monopolists,  discouraged  by  the 
opposition  of  the  Commons,  lowered  their  pretensions,  and  many  of  the 
patentees  withdrew  their  interests  in  the  Company.  Those  who  remained, 
like  Gorges,  now  did  little  more  than  issue  grants  of  domain  in  the  north- 
eastern parts  of  America. 

This  was  the  first  debate  on  American  affairs  in  the  British  Parliament ; 
and  it  is  a singular  fact  that  in  the  course  of  it  the  supreme  authority  of  the 
National  Legislature  over  the  American  colonies  was  plainly  asserted,  the 
attempted  exercise  of  which,  in  the  matter  of  taxation,  led  to  the  old 
war  for  independence,  one  hundred  and  fifty  years  afterward,  and  the  dis- 
memberment of  the  British  empire. 

Before  this  disaster  to  the  hopes  of  the  Plymouth  Company,  grants  of 
domain  had  been  made.  The  first  was  to  its  secretary.  Captain  John  Mason, 
who  had  been  governor  of  Newfoundland.  It  embraced  the  country  in 
Massachusetts  between  Salem  and  Newburyport,  inland  to  the  sources  of  the 
Merrimac  River,  and  all  the  islands  on  its  sea-front  within  three  miles  of 
the  coasts.  To  forestall  French  settlements  in  the  East,  and  to  secure  the 
country  to  Protestants,  Gorges  procured  a grant  to  Sir  William  Alexander 
of  the  whole  main  eastward  of  the  St.  Croix  River,  excepting  a small  por- 


Chap.  V. 


NEWFOUNDLAND  AND  NEW  HAMPSHIRE. 


227 


tion  of  Acadi6.  Sir  William  was  Secretary  of  State  from  Scotland,  and  author 
of  a hundred  sonnets  and  some  dull  tragedies.  The  domain  was  named 
New  Scotland.  The  charter  being  in  Latin,  it  was  written  Nova  Scotia,  and 
has  ever  since  retained  that  name.  The  baronet  was  invested  with  the  regal 
privileges  of  a count-palatine,  in  1630,  and  was  created  Earl  of  Stirling  and 
Viscount  of  Canada.  The  domain  was  created  a fief  or  dependence  of  the 
Scottish  crown,  and  an  attempt  was  made  to  establish  a Scotch  settlement 
there.  It  failed.  Alexander  lacked  the  energy  necessary  for  such  an  under- 
taking. 

When  the  suit  of  Charles  for  the  hand  of  the  Spanish  princess  was  ended, 
he  sought  and  obtained  that  of  Henrietta  Maiy,  sister  of  the  King  of 
France.  Their  marriage,  in  1625,  promised  friendly  relations  between  the 
two  countries,  notwithstanding  she  was  a Roman  Catholic  ; but  the  folly  and 
baseness  of  the  Duke  of  Buckingham,  the  court  favorite,  who  had  negotiated 
the  union,  soon  plunged  the  two  nations  into  war,  the  effects  of  which  were 
seen  in  America.  Sir  David  Kirk  was  sent  with  ships  and  soldiers  to  con- 
quer Canada ; and  then  occurred  the  surrender  of  Quebec  to  the  English, 
mentioned  in  a previous  chapter.  It  was  a barren  victory,  for  at  almost  the 
same  time,  Canada,  Cape  Breton,  and  undefined  Acadie  were  restored  to  the 
French  by  treaty. 

-Meanwhile,  Gorges  and  Mason  had  projected  plans  for  a very  extensive 
colonization.  They  obtained  a patent  for  the  country  along  the  coast  of 
New  England  between  the  Merrimac  and  Kennebec  Rivers,  and  back  to 
the  St.  Lawrence,  under  the  title  of  the  “ Province  of  Laconia.”  It  was 
represented  to  be  a terrestrial  paradise  in  beauty  and  fertility.  Settlements 
at  various  points  were  projected  and  attempted,  but  none  seem  to  have 
become  permanent  until  about  the  year  1630.  Mason  and  Gorges  had 
agreed  to  divide  their  territory  at  the  Piscataqua  River,  and  in  1629  the 
former  obtained  a patent  for  the  country  between  that  river  and  the  Merri- 
mac, and  gave  it  the  name  of  New  Hampshire.  He  built  a house  at  the 
mouth  of  the  Piscataqua,  in  1631,  and  named  the  spot  Portsmouth.  He  had 
been  governor  of  Portsmouth,  in  Hampshire  county,  England,  and  these 
names  he  transferred  to  his  new  territory  and  first  permanent  settlement. 
Four  years  afterwards  he  died.  His  widow  tried  in  vain  to  manage  his  large 
landed  estate  profitably.  It  passed  into  the  possession  of  his  retainers  in 
payment  for  their  services.  These  settlers  were  now  left  to  themselves  to 
fashion  an  independent  state,  but  it  was  of  slow  growth.  There  was  then 
only  one  agricultural  settlement  in  all  New  England,  excepting  in  Massachu- 
setts, and  Scarcely  the  germ  of  a state  had  appeared.  The  colonists  were 
mostly  squatters,  and  moved  frequently  from  place  to  place.  They  were 


228 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  II. 


chiefly  hunters  and  fishermen,  and  cultivated  the  soil  only  for  the  production 
of  a few  vegetables  and  a little  maize  or  Indian  corn.  Their  huts  were  scat- 
tered along  the  harbors ; and  when  some  families  came  to  Maine  to  establish 
a farming  community,  they  were  laughed  at  by  the  older  residents  as  vision- 
aries, and  they  went  to  the  Plymouth  colony.  The  whole  enterprise  was 
unprofitable  to  the  proprietors.  From  the  beginning  the  expenses  had  been 
greater  than  the  receipts,,  and  now  the  jealousy  of  different  parties  threat- 
ened the  Company  with  utter  ruin,  whilst  the  French,  resolved  to  maintain 
their  hold  upon  New  France,  were  building  huts  at  the  mouth  of  the  Penob- 
scot, and  threatening  to  seize  the  territory  between  that  river  and  the  Ken- 
nebec. The  Indians,  too,  were  showing  restlessness. 


FISHERMEN  ON  THE  COAST  OF  NEW  ENGLAND. 


In  this  unpromising  state  of  the  affairs  of  the  Plymouth  Company, 
Gorges  was  again  summoned  before  the  House  of  Commons  to  show  cause 
why  the  charter  should  not  be  revoked.  The  merchants  were  restive  under 
the  restrictions  of  the  monopoly  ; the  Commons  regarded  it  as  a royal  instru- 
ment ; churchmen  looked  upon  it  as  a foe  to  prelacy,  because  Puritans  were 
sheltered  on  its  domain ; and  the  new  king,  Charles  (whose  father  had  died 
in  1625),  suspected  the  New  England  colonists  were  enjoying  liberties  incon- 
sistent with  the  royal  prerogative.  Charles  was  as  bigoted  a believer  in  the 
divine  right  of  kings  as  his  father,  and  that  belief  manifested  in  practice 
proved  his  ruin. 

Gorges  defended  the  Company  against  the  various  charges  with  vigor,  but 


Chap.  V. 


DISSOLUTION  OF  THE  PLYMOUTH  COMPANY. 


229 


he  and  his  associates  perceived  that  further  contention  for  its  existence 
would  be  useless.  Therefore  they  prepared  for  its  dissolution  by  dividing 
North  Virginia  into  twelve  royal  provinces,  assigning  each  to  persons  named  ; 
and  at  their  last  meeting  in  April,  1635,  they  caused  to  be  entered  upon 
their  minutes  the  following  record : “ We  have  been  bereaved  of  friends ; 
oppressed  by  losses,  expenses  and  troubles ; assailed  before  the  Privy 
Council  again  and  again  with  groundless  charges ; and  weakened  by  the 
French  and  other  foes  without  and  within  the  realm,  and  what  remains  is 
only  a breathless  carcass.  We,  therefore,  now  resign  the  patent  to  the  king, 
first  reserving  all  grants  by  us  made  and  all  vested  rights — a patent  we  have 
holden  about  fifteen  years.” 

The  king  appointed  eleven  of  his  Privy  Council  a “ Board  of  Lords  Com- 
missioners of  all  the  American  Plantations,”  and  committed  to  them  the 
general  direction  of  colonial  affairs.  Gorges,  then  sixty  years  of  age,  and 
robust  in  mind  and  body,  was  appointed  Governor-General  over  New  Eng- 
land. A ship-of-war  was  in  preparation  to  bring  him  to  America,  but  was 
broken  in  the  launching,  and  the  baronet  never  crossed  the  Atlantic  Ocean. 
His  nephew,  William  Gorges,  was  sent  over  as  his  lieutenant,  to  administer 
the  government.  He  made  his  headquarters  at  Saco,  where  he  found  about 
one  hundred  and  fifty  inhabitants  governed  by  a voluntary  social  compact. 
There  he  established  a regular  government  on  the  28th  of  March,  1636,  the 
first  within  the  State  of  Maine.  Soon  afterward  a royal  charter  made  the 
elder  Gorges  lord  proprietor  of  a large  territory  in  that  region,  called  the 
“ Province  or  County  of  Maine.”  Gratified  by  this  mark  of  royal  favor,  he 
began  energetically  in  his  old  age  to  devise  laws  for  his  palatinate,  such  as  a 
soldier  and  royalist  would  be  likely  to  conceive,  but  they  were  little  heeded 
in  America.  Gorges  lived  eight  years  in  the  enjoyment  of  his  vice-regal 
honors,  and  soon  after  his  death  his  province  passed  under  the  jurisdiction 
of  Massachusetts. 

Feeble  and  scattered  settlements  grew  in  New  Hampshire,  and  in  1641 
these  formed  a union  with  the  flourishing  Massachusetts  colony,  and 
remained  a part  of  that  province  until  1680,  when  the  king  ordered  their 
separation,  and  the  more  feeble  partner  became  a royal  province.  Its  first 
governor  (John  Cutts)  was  appointed  by  the  Crown,  who  was  assisted  by  a 
council  also  made  by  royal  appointment ; and  there  was  a house  of  repre- 
sentatives elected  by  the  people.  Then  was  laid  the  foundation  of  the  Com- 
monwealth of  New  Hampshire. 

Sir  George  Calvert  has  been  alluded  to  as  the  founder  of  Maryland.  He 
was  a thorough  courtier,  and  one  of  the  most  brilliant  and  able  of  the  sup- 
porters of  the  royal  prerogative.  King  James  knighted  him  in  1617,  and  in 


230 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  11. 


1619  he  was  commissioned  one  of  the  principal  Secretaries  of  State.  Me 
was  then  thirty-seven  years  of  age.  For  a few  years  afterward  he  was  one 
of  the  most  active  of  James’s  courtiers. 

Calvert  had  taken  great  interest  from  early  youth  in  the  discovery  and 
settlement  of  foreign  countries.  He  was  a member  of  the  East  India  Com- 
pany, and  also  of  the  London  Company,  by  whom  Virginia  was  colonized. 
The  same  year  when  the  May-Flozoer  came  to  America,  he  purchased  a part 
of  Newfoundland,  and  named  his  domain  Avalon.  He  at  once  took  vigor- 
ous measures  for  planting  an  English  colony  there,  but  failed.  At  about  the 
same  time  his  son  Cecil  married  the  beautiful  Anne,  daughter  of  the  Earl  of 
Arundel,  who  was  a member  of  the  Roman  Catholic  Church.  This  union 
brought  him  into  more  intimate  relations  with  distinguished  persons  of  that 
sect.  Among  them  was  Gondamar,  the  Spanish  ambassador  in  London,  and 
Tillieres,  the  French  ambassador  at  the  same  court.  The  influence  of  these 
men  soon  wrought  a change  in  Calvert’s  religious  thoughts.  He  became  an 
advocate  for  the  Spanish  match,  on  the  floor  of  the  House  of  Commons; 
and  he  inflamed  the  resentment  of  King  James  against  that  body  by  giving 
him  a highly-colored  account  of  their  proceedings  in  the  matter.  Finally,  in 
the  summer  of  1624,  his  adherence  to  the  Church  of  Rome  became  so  pal- 
pable, that  he  was  compelled  to  abandon  the  Secretaryship.  Early  the 
following  March,  James  gave  him  an  Irish  peerage  by  creating  him  “ Baron 
of  Baltimore  in  the  County  of  Longford.”  Si.xteen  days  afterward  the 
monarch  died.  When  his  successor  came  to  White  Hall  and  the  oath  of 
allegiance  and  supremacy  was  offered  to  Lord  Baltimore  as  one  of  the  Privy 
Council,  he  declined  to  take  it,  and  retired  to  Ireland  bearing  a cordial  letter 
of  introduction  and  good-will  from  his  king  to  the  Lord  Deputy  of  that 
country. 

The  Roman  Catholics  of  England  were  suffering  much  persecution  at 
that  time  from  the  Puritans  on  one  side,  who  were  daily  increasing  in 
strength,  and  from  the  Churchmen  on  the  other ; and  Lord  Baltimore 
desired  to  provide  an  asylum  for  them  in  America.  In  the  summer  of  1627 
he  visited  Avalon  to  inspect  it  in  person,  with  a view  of  planting  a Roman 
Catholic  colony  there.  He  went  in  a ship  armed  with  twenty  cannon,  as  a 
protection  against  the  French.  A few  friends  and  some  priests  accompanied 
him.  After  remaining  a few  months  he  returned  to  England,  and  the  next 
spring  he  sailed  again  for  Newfoundland  with  his  second  wife  and  all  his 
children,  excepting  the  married  ones. 

The  following  winter  was  a very  severe  one.  In  the  spring  he  sent  his 
children  home  ; and  at  the  beginning  of  autumn,  with  his  wife  and  retainers, 
he  sailed  for  Virginia,  arriving  at  Jamestown  in  October.  When  he  appeared 


Chap.  V. 


MARYLAND  AND  ITS  CHARTER. 


231 


before  Governor  Harvey  and  his  council,  and  was  asked  what  his  purpose 
was,  he  answered:  “To  plant  and  dwell.”  “Will  you  take  the  oath  which 
we  all  have  taken  ? ” asked  the  governor.  “ I cannot  with  a good  con- 
science,” his  lordship  answered.  “ Then  you  must  leave  with  the  first  ship 
hence  to  England,”  said  Harvey.  He  did  so,  leaving  his  wife  and  retainers 
to  winter  in  Virginia.  He  returned  for  them  in  1630,  and  brought  with 
him  a patent  from  King  Charles  for  a territory  south  of  the  James  River, 
for  the  rigors  of  the  climate  and  the  barrenness  of  the  soil  of  Avalon,  and 
the  menaces  of  the  French,  had  determined  him  to  abandon  his  domain  on 
Newfoundland.  The  Virginia  Company  made  so  much  opposition  to  his 
new  charter  that  he  was  induced  to  surrender  it  and  accept  one  for  territory 
north  and  east  of  the  Potomac  River,  and  embracing  the  Chesapeake  Bay, 
which  he  had  explored. 

Lord  Baltimore  desired  to  call  that  chartered  domain  Crescentia ; but  in 
deference  to  the  king,  when  the  charter  was  drawn  up,  the  space  for  the 
name  was  left  blank  that  his  Majesty  might  fill  it  as  he  pleased.  When 
Baltimore  appeared  before  Charles  to  receive  his  signature  to  the  document, 
the  monarch  asked:  “What  will  you  call  the  country?”  His  lordship 
referred  the  matter  to  his  Majesty.  “ Then  let  us  name  it  after  the  queen,” 
said  Charles.  “ What  do  you  think  of  Mariana?”  The  expert  courtier  dis- 
sented, because  that  was  the  name  of  the  Spanish  historian  who  taught  the 
heresy  that  “ the  will  of  the  people  is  higher  than  the  law  of  tyrants.”  The 
king,  still  disposed  to  compliment  his  queen,  said:  “ Let  it  be  Terra  Maria” 
— Mary  Land.  So  it  was  that  in  the  charter  the  province  was  named  Mary- 
land, in  honor  of  Queen  Henrietta  Mary.  Before  the  great  seal  of  England 
was  affixed  to  the  patent.  Lord  Baltimore  died  in  London.  His  son  Cecil, 
the  successor  to  his  estates  and  titles,  received  the  charter  a few  months 
afterward,  dated  June  20,  1632.  The  territory  defined  in  the  patent 
extended  along  each  side  of  Chesapeake  Bay  from  the  fortieth  degree  to  the 
mouth  of  the  Potomac,  and  westward  along  the  line  of  that  river. 

The  Maryland  charter,  it  is  said,  was  drawn  up  by  the  hand  of  the  first 
Lord  Baltimore.  It  v/as  evidently  copied,  substantially,  from  the  one 
granted  by  Charles  to  his  Attorney-General,  Sir  Robert  Heath,  for  “Caro- 
lina,” a territory  south  of  the  Roanoke  River.  It  gave  greater  democratic 
privileges  to  the  settlers  under  it  than  any  yet  issued  by  monopolist  or 
monarch.  It  declared  that  the  territory  was  “ out  of  the  plenitude  of  royal 
power ; ” the  people  were  exempted  from  taxation  by  the  crown  except  by 
their  own  consent ; and  other  important  political  privileges  were  secured  to 
them.  It  silently  allowed  religious  toleration.  While  it  directed  the  dedi- 
cation and  consecration  of  “ churches,  chapels,  and  places  of  worship  ” in 
16 


232 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  II. 


accordance  with  the  prescriptions  of  the  ecclesiastical  laws  of  England,  the 
matter  of  a state  theology  was  left  entirely  untouched,  and  within  the  legis- 
lative power  of  the  colonists  themselves.  This  toleration  was  a wise  pro- 
vision. It  promoted  the  growth  of  the  colony  when  it  was  established,  for 
those  who  were  persecuted  by  the  Puritans  of  New  England  and  the  Church- 
men of  Virginia,  went  thither  and  found  a refuge  and  peace.  The  charter 
also  provided  that  the  proprietary  should  have  “ free,  full,  and  absolute 
power  to  enact  all  laws  necessary  for  the  common  good,  not,  however,  with- 


CECIL,  LORD  BALTIMORP 


out  the  ‘advice,  consent,  and  approbation  of  the  freemen  of  the  province’ 
or  their  representatives  convoked  in  general  assembly.”  This  was  the  first 
instance  of  any  provision  having  been  made  in  an  American  patent  for 
securing  to  the  citizen  a share  in  legislation. 

Armed  with  this  charter,  young  Lord  Baltimore  set  about  the  business 
of  colonizing  his  domain,  not  for  an  asylum  for  his  persecuted  co-religionists, 
but  chiefly  for  pecuniary  gain.  He  appointed  his  half-brother,  Leonard 


Chap.  V. 


EMIGRANTS  ON  THE  SEA. 


233 


Calvert,  governor;  and  on  the  22d  of  November,  1633,  that  kinsman  and  his 
brother,  “ with  very  near  twenty  other  gentlemen  of  very  good  fashion,  and 
three  hundred  laboring  men  ” (so  Lord  Baltimore  wrote  to  Wentworth,  after- 
ward Earl  of  Stafford),  sailed  from  Cowes,  in  the  Isle  of  Wight,  in  two  ships, 
the  Ark  and  Dove.  The  Calverts  and  the  other  “gentlemen  ” and  some  of 
the  laborers  were  Roman  Catholics,  but  a greater  portion  of  the  latter  were 
Protestants,  who  took  the  oath  of  supremacy  before  leaving  England.  The 
emigrants  were  accompanied  by  two  Jesuit  priests.  Fathers  Andrew  White 
and  John  Altham.  They  performed  religious  ceremonies  at  the  point  of 
departure,  while  a gentle  east  wind  w'as  blowing,  “committing  the  principal 
parts  of  the  ship  to  the  protection  of  God  especially,  and  of  His  most  Holy 
Mother,  and  St.  Ignatius,  and  all  the  guardian  angels  of  Maryland.” 

The  colonists  took  the  tedious  .southern  route  byway  of  the  Canaries  and 
the  West  Indies.  They  had  just  escaped  the  perils  of  The  Needles  on  the 
coast  of  the  Isle  of  Wight,  when  the  fear  of  the  Turkish  cruisers,  then  the 
terror  of  all  Christian  seamen,  took  possession  of  them.  This  fear  was 
soon  allayed  by  the  appearance  of  a large  English  merchantman  called  The 
Dragon,  well  armed  and  bound  for  Angola,  which  would  convoy  them  beyond 
the  line  of  danger.  When  only  two  days  out,  they  were  overtaken  by  a 
furious  gale.  The  Dragon  turned  back;  the  emigrant  vessels  went  forward. 
The  tempest  increased  when  the  night  came  on.  The  people  of  the  Dove, 
the  smaller  vessel,  notified  the  officers  of  the  staunch  Ark  that  in  case  of 
danger  they  would  hang  out  a lighted  lantern  at  the  masthead.  That  signal 
of  distress  appeared  at  midnight  for  a few  minutes,  and  then  suddenly  van- 
ished. “All  are  lost!”  thought  the  tenants  of  the  Ark,  and  they  grieved 
.sorely.  They  had  no  doubt  the  Dove,  with  her  precious  freight  of  Christians, 
had  gone  to  the  bottom  of  the  sea. 

For  three  days  the  tempest  sw'ept  the  ocean,  when  suddenly  the  clouds 
gathered  in  fearful  tumult,  rain  fell  in  torrents,  and  for  a few  minutes  a 
dreadful  hurricane  threatened  instant  destruction  to  all  in  its  path.  It 
seemed  as  if  “all  the  malicious  spirits  of  the  storm,  and  all  the  evil  genii  of 
Maryland  had  come  forth  to  battle  ” against  the  good  ship.  Her  mainsail 
was  split  from  top  to  bottom  ; her  rudder  was  unshipped,  and  she  was  left  at 
the  mercy  of  the  winds  and  waves.  In  mortal  terror  the  emigrants  fell  on 
their  knees  and  prayed  ; and  the  Roman  Catholics  uttered  vows  in  honor  of 
“the  Blessed  Virgin  Mary  and  her  Immaculate  Conception  ; of  St.  Ignatius, 
the  patron  saint  of  Maryland  ; St.  Michael,  and  all  the  guardian  angels  of 
the  same  country.”  “ I had  betaken  myself  to  prayer,”  says  Father  White, 
from  whose  narrative  I have  quoted,  “ when  the  sea  was  raging  its  worst, 
and  (may  this  be  to  the  glory  of  God)  I had  scarcely  finished,  when  they 


234 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  Jl. 


observed  that  the  storm  was  abating.”  After  that  the  voyagers  had  delight- 
ful weather  for  three  months,  on  the  sea  and  on  the  land. 

The  Ark  steered  for  Bonavista,  one  of  the  Cape  de  Verd  islands,  but  al- 
tered her  course  and  entered  a harbor  of  the  island  of  Barbadoes,  on  the  east- 
ern verge  of  the  Antilles,  where  her  people,  all  regarded  as  Roman  Catholics, 
were  coldly  received,  and  charged  extravagant  prices  for  the  provisions  which 
they  were  compelled  to  purchase.  The  voyagers  there  learned  that  they  had 
escaped  a Spanish  fleet  lying  at  Bonavista,  and  also  another  peril  in  the  port 
at  which  they  had  arrived.  The  slaves  on  the  island  had  conspired  to 
murder  their  masters,  seize  the  first  ship  that  should  appear,  and  put  to  sea. 
The  conspiracy  had  just  been  discovered,  and  its  cruel  purposes  arrested. 
Their  eyes  were  now  greeted'  by  the  arrival  there  of  the  pinnace  Dove,  after 
a separation  of  six  weeks.  In  the  terrible  gale  she  had  put  back  while  her 
lantern  was  at  the  masthead,  and  took  refuge  in  the  Scilly  Isles,  whence  she 
sailed  with  a fair  wind  in  search  of  her  consort.  After  perilous  wanderings 
over  the  waters,  the  Dove  returned  to  the  Ark. 

The  emigrants  left  Barbadoes  after  a short  sojourn  there,  passed  several 
islands  of  the  Antilles,  near  one  of  which  they  encountered  canoes  full  of 
naked  and  painted  cannibals,  and  late  in  February  they  sailed  in  between 
the  Capes  of  Virginia.  They  touched  at  Point  Comfort  and  then  went  up 
to  Jamestown,  where  royal  letters  borne  by  Calvert  secured  for  them  a 
friendly  reception  from  Governor  Harvey.  Nine  days  they  tarried  pleasantly 
there,  and  then  sailed  for  the  Chesapeake  and  entered  the  broad  mouth  of 
the  Potomac  River.  They  were  delighted  with  the  great  stream  and  the 
scenery  on  its  banks,  and  gave  to  it  the  name  of  St.  Gregory,  in  honor  of 
the  canonized  Pope  of  that  name.  “ Never  have  I beheld  a larger  or  more 
beautiful  river,”  wrote  Father  White.  “ The  Thames  seems  a mere  rivulet 
in  comparison  with  it ; it  is  not  disfigured  by  any  swamps,  but  has  firm  land 
on  each  side.  Fine  groves  of  trees  appear,  not  choked  with  briers  or  bushes 
or  undergrowth,  but  growing  at  intervals  as  if  planted  by  the  hand  of  man, 
so  that  you  can  drive  a four-horse  carriage,  wherever  you  choose,  through 
the  midst  of  the  trees.  Just  at  the  mouth  of  the  river  we  saw  the  natives  in 
arms.  That  night  fires  blazed  throughout  the  whole  country,  and  since  they 
had  never  seen  so  large  a ship,  messengers  were  sent  in  all  directions,  who 
reported  that  a canoe,  like  an  island,  had  come  with  as  many  men  as  there 
were  trees  in  the  woods.” 

The  colonists  sailed  up  the  Potomac  to  the  Heron  Islands,  and  on  Black- 
stone  (which  they  named  St.  Clements)  they  landed  at  a little  past  the 
middle  of  March.  The  air  was  balmy,  and  sweet  with  opening  spring 
flo'»"-rs,  and  birds  were  filling  the  groves  with  rich  melody.  The  shy  natives 


Chap.  V. 


THE  NATIVES  OF  MARYLAND. 


235 


came  to  them  one  after  another,  and  were  disarmed  of  all  hostility  by  the 
kindness  of  the  Britons.  There,  on  the  feast  of  the  Annunciation  (March 
25th),  the  priests,  in  full  canonicals,  performed  religious  services,  and  admin- 
istered the  Lord’s  Supper  for  the  first  time  in  all  that  savage  region.  Then 
the  whole  company  followed  Governor  Calvert  and  the  priests  in  procession, 
bearing  a huge  cross  which  they  had  fashioned  from  a tree,  and  planted  the 
symbol  of  Christianity  and  civilization  at  a chosen  spot.  The  Roman 
Catholics,  on  bended  knees,  recited  the  “ Litanies  of  the  Sacred  Cross  ” 
according  to  the  Italian  ritual.  On  the  verge  of  the  forest  shadows,  as  won- 
dering spectators  of  the  strange  scene,  stood  groups  of  savage  men,  women 
and  children,  clad  in  scanty  and  picturesque  garments,  with  their  emperor 
and  his  queen.  He  was  at  the  head  of  a tribe  called  the  Piscataways,  and 
ruled  over  several  small  principalities,  as  did  Powhatan,  in  Virginia. 

Calvert  proceeded  at  once  to  pay  a visit  of  ceremony  to  the  emperor  to 
make  a treaty  of  friendship  and  secure  his  influence  over  the  surrounding 
tribes  in  favor  of  the  colonists.  In  the  Dove  and  another  pinnace  which 
they  had  procured  at  Jamestown,  the  governor,  with  F'ather  Altham  and  a 
part  of  the  emigrants,  sailed  up  the  river,  leaving  the  Ark  at  anchor. 
Indians  appeared  here  and  there  along  the  shores  for  a few  minutes,  and 
then  disappeared  in  the  woods,  fleeing  in  alarm.  They  finally  reached  the 
village  of  Potomac,  near  Mount  Vernon,  whose  king  was  a youth,  and  the 
people  were  ruled  by  his  uncle  as  regent.  Their  fears  were  spon  overcome, 
and  Father  Altham,  through  an  interpreter  from  Jamestown,  explained  that 
their  object  in  coming  was  to  teach  the  Indians  to  lead  better  lives,  and  to 
live  with  them  as  brothers.  The  old  sachem  welcomed  them,  saying:  “We 
will  use  one  table — my  people  shall  hunt  for  my  pale-faced  brother,  and  all 
things  shall  be  in  common  between  us.” 

The  colonists,  pleased  with  this  peaceful  conquest,  went  on  to  Piscataway, 
where  they  found  five  hundred  warriors  ready  to  dispute  their  landing.  A 
parley  ensued  which  ended  in  the  emperor’s  venturing  on  board  the  Dove, 
where  he  was  soon  satisfied  that  his  visitors  were  peaceful  and  powerful. 
He  readily  gave  them  permission  to  settle  anywhere  within  his  empire,  near 
him  or  more  distant.  Calvert  thought  it  better  to  settle  nearer  the  mouth  of 
the  Potomac,  and  returned  to  St.  Clements.  There  he  found  the  natives 
very  friendly  and  familiar,  and  watching  with  marvelling  eyes  the  building  of 
a brigantine,  of  timber  brought  over  from  England.  They  supposed  the  float- 
ing vessels  had  been  each  hollowed  out  of  a single  tree,  as  were  their  own 
canoes,  and  concluded  England  must  be  a mighty  country  where  such  big 
trees  grew.  They  were  awed  by  the  flash  and  roar  of  the  cannon,  supposing 
them  to  be  lightning  and  thunder  under  the  control  of  the  visitors. 


236 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  H. 


The  governor  now  explored  the  Wicomico  River  emptying  into  another 
(which  they  called  St.  George)  twelve  miles  upward,  and  anchored  at  an 
Indian  village  of  the  same  name,  where  he  and  his  company  were  hospitably- 
entertained  that  night,  after  holding  a friendly  conference  with  the  reign- 
ing sachem,  who  gave  up  his  own  mat  to  Calvert  to  sleep  on.  The  inter- 
preter explained  the  object  of  the  visit.  The  sachem  said  but  little,  but  told 
them  to  examine  the  country.  The  governor  did  so  the  next  day.  Tleased 


BUILDING  OF  A BRIGANTINE. 


with  the  situation,  the  soil  and  the  forest  growth,  he  determined  to  plant  his 
first  settlement  there,  and  make  Wicomico  the  capital.  He  possessed  dele- 
gated power  to  take  possession  of  the  country''  without  leave  or  reward,  in 
accordance  with  the  custom  of  the  strong  mailed  hand  of  Europeans  at  that 
time,  whose  creed  ran — “ We  believe  that  Might  makes  Right,”  but  he 
believed  it  to  be  more  noble  and  wise  to  be  just.  He  believed,  too,  that 
there  was  more  worldly  profit  in  honor  than  in  dishonor — that  “ honesty-  ” 
was  “the  best  policy,”  and  found  it  so.  He  entered  into  a treaty  with  the 
sachem  for  the  ptirchasc  of  a large  portion  of  his  domain.  It  was  concluded  ; 
and  Calvert  gave  the  Indians  some  English  cloth,  axes,  hoes,  rakes,  knives, 
and  some  trinkets  for  the  women  of  little  real  value,  for  about  thirty  miles 
of  territory,  including  the  village ; and  he  named  the  domain  “ Augusta 
Carolina.”  The  Indians  gave  up  to  the  colonists,  for  their  immediate  use, 
one-half  of  their  village.  Their  houses  were  of  “ an  oblong,  oval  shape,” 
with  a window  in  the  roof  which  admitted  light  and  also  permitted  the 
smoke  to  escape  from  the  fire  built  in  the  centre  of  the  room.  They  also 
agreed  to  give  to  the  settlers  one-half  of  their  corn-grounds,  which  theyMvcre 
then  planting,  reserving  the  residue  for  their  own  use  until  the  harvest 
should  be  gathered,  when  the  whole  of  the  purchased  domain  was  to  be 


Chap.  V. 


FIRST  CAPITAL  OF  MARYLAND. 


237 


given  up  to  the  Britons.  They  mutually  agreed  that  if  an  injury  should  be 
done  by  one  party,  full  satisfaction  should  be  given  by  the  other ; and  there 
was  a tacit  understanding  that  they  should  be  allies  in  war.  The  king 
regarded  this  as  essential ; indeed  it  was  the  most  cogent  argument  in  favor 
of  his  making  a treaty,  for  he  wished  a powerful  ally,  his  territory  having 
been  desolated  and  his  subjects  driven  from  their  homes,  by  the  powerful 
“ Susquehanocs  ” of  the  North. 

On  the  27th  of  March,  1634,  Calvert  took  formal  possession  of  the  terri- 
tory. The  vessels  came  from  St.  Clements  with  the  remainder  of  the 
emigrants,  and  when  they  landed,  a cannon  was  fired  to  commemorate  their 
arrival  at  the  end  of  their  weary  wanderings.  They  built  a store-house  and 
a small  battery  and  planted  a portion  of  the  soil.  Then  the  governor,  on  a 
warm  day  in  April,  proceeded  with  a part  of  the  company  to  a chosen  spot 
fragrant  with  wild-flowers,  about  a mile  from  the  river,  where  he  laid  out  a 
capital  city  that  was  dedicated,  with  imposing  religious  ceremonies,  to  “ the 
Blessed  Virgin  Mary,”  and  was  named  St.  Mary’s.  There  the  settlers  imme- 
diately began  to  build,  and  were  aided  by  the  really  gentle  Indians.  While 
they  were  so  engaged,  they  were  visited  by  Governor  Harvey,  of  Virginia, 
who  came  in  a pinnace  with  some  of  his  councillors.  Governor  Calvert 
received  him  on  board  the  Ark  with  great  ceremony,  and  gave  a banquet 
there  to  which  several  of  the  neighboring  chiefs  were  invited.  To  the  king 
of  Patuxent,  reigning  eastward  of  St.  Mary’s,  special  attention  was  paid,  for 
he  was  a conspicuous  friend  of  the  white  people.  He  was  seated  at  table 
between  the  two  governors,  when  one  of  his  followers  seeing  him  there,  and 
suspecting  there  was  some  evil  design  against  his  sovereign,  would  have 
leaped  overboard,  swam  ashore,  sped  to  his  people  and  aroused  them  to 
arms  with  possible  disastrous  consequences,  had  he  not  been  restrained  by 
those  near  him,  and  assured  by  the  king  that  all  was  right.  When  the  war- 
rior’s suspicions  were  allayed  and  he  was  pacified,  the  monarch  of  the  Patux- 
ent addressed  the  other  chiefs  present,  saying:  “ I love  the  English  so  well, 
that  if  they  should  go  about  to  kill  me,  and  I had  so  much  breath  as  to 
speak,  I would  command  the  people  not  to  avenge  my  death  ; for  I know 
they  do  no  such  thing,  except  it  were  through  mine  own  fault.” 

These  settlers  seem  to  have  been  exempted  from  the  distresses  which  had 
befallen  the  earlier  emigrants  to  other  colonies.  The  surrounding  native 
inhabitants  were  friendly ; they  had  a genial  climate  ; general  good  health 
prevailed ; they  had  abundance  of  food,  and  the  soil  yielded  to  moderate 
tillage  abundant  fruit.  They  were  vested  with  peculiar  civil  privileges  ; were 
not  hampered  by  ecclesiastical  restrictions ; and  a year  after  they  had  estab- 
lished their  capital  at  St.  Mary’s,  a legislative  assembly,  composed  of  the 


238 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  II. 


whole  people — a purely  democratic  legislature — convened  there.  As  their 
numbers  increased  by  emigration,  this  method  of  legislation  was  found  to  be 
inconvenient,  and  in  1639  a representative  government  was  established,  the 
people  being  allowed  to  send  as  many  delegates  as  they  pleased.  Then  was 
founded  the  republican  commonwealth  of  Marylmid.  It  had  been  founded 
in  justice,  and  by  the  exercise  of  kindness  toward  the  native  inhabitants; 
and,  but  for  the  wickedness  of  ambitious  men,  the  white  people  and  the 
Indians  might  have  lived  together  in  perfect  harmony,  for  the  savages  were 
easily  and  powerfully  impressed  with  a sense  of  gratitude  for  good  treatment. 
This  trait  was  exhibited  by  the  king  of  the  Piscataways,  the  most  powerful 
tribe  in  Maryland.  He  was  taken  sick  and  forty  conjurers  tried  to  cure  him 
by  conjurations.  He  grew  worse,  when  Father  White  asked  and  obtained 
permission  to  treat  him.  The  priest  gave  him  some  medicine  and  bled  him, 
when  the  king  soon  recovered  his  health.  Grateful  for  the  blessing,  he 
begged  the  priest  to  baptize  him,  his  queen,  and  their  daughter,  to  prepare 
them  to  enter  the  Christian  Church.  In  a chapel  built  of  bark  for  the  occa- 
sion, they  and  some  chiefs  were  baptized ; and  in  the  afternoon  the  king  and 
his  queen  were  married  according  to  Christian  rites.  Their  daughter,  as  I 
have  observed  elsewhere,  was  sent  to  St.  Mary’s,  to  be  educated. 


CHAPTER  VI. 


CLAIMS  OF  THE  DUTCH  IN  NEW  ENGLAND — A DUTCH  EMBASSY  TO  THE  PILGRIMS — THE  CAPITAL 
OF  THE  PILGRIMS — THE  DUTCH  AND  ENGLISH  IN  THE  VALLEY  OF  THE  CONNECTICUT — FIRST 
ENGLISH  SETTLEMENT  THERE  — THE  DUTCH  EXASPERATE  THE  INDIANS  — EMIGRATION  OF 
PURITANS  TO  THE  CONNECTICUT  VALLEY  — CONFLICTING  CLAIMS  TO  THE  TERRITORY  — 
hooker’s  EMIGRATION — THE  PEQUODS  JEALOUS  — WAR  WITH  THE  PEQUODS — THEIR  DE- 
STRUCTION. 

WE  have  observed  that  the  Dutch  who  founded  New  Netherland 
and  the  city  of  New  Amsterdam  (now  New  York)  extended 
their  explorations  and  traffic  east,  west,  north,  and  south.  They 
even  went  as  far  as  Narraganset  and  Cape  Cod  bays  in  search  of  the  beaver 
and  otter.  As  Captain  Block  had  discovered  the  Connecticut  River  and 
named  it  the  Fresh-Water,  and  had  looked  into  Narraganset  Bay,  the  Dutch 
felt  that  they  had  a legal  claim  upon  those  regions  according  to  the  English 
doctrine  concerning  the  right  of  discovery.  So  early  as  1623,  the  agent  of 
the  Dutch  West  India  Company  seems  to  have  taken  possession  of  the  Con- 
necticut River  and  the  lands  drained  by  its  tributaries,  in  the  name  of  the 
Company  and  of  the  States-General  of  Holland. 

A peaceful  and  profitable  trade  might  have  been  carried  on  with  the 
natives  of  the  Connecticut  Valley,  by  the  Dutch,  had  not  the  latter  exaspe- 
rated the  Indians  by  the  seizure  of  one  of  their  chiefs  and  demanding  a 
heavy  ransom  for  his  release.  The  savages  threatened  the  intruders  with 
violence,  and  the  Dutch  began  to  build  a stockade  fort  for  their  own  protec- 
tion, at  what  is  yet  known  as  Dutch  Point,  near  the  City  of  Hartford. 
Wrath  prevailed  a long  time.  At  length  the  Indians  were  pacified,  and  at 
their  request  the  Dutch  abandoned  the  fort. 

A friendly  intercourse  was  now  opened  between  the  Dutch  on  Manhattan 
and  the  English  at  New  Plymouth.  In  the  spring  of  1627,  Isaac  de  Ras- 
ieres,  secretary  of  the  colony  of  New  Netherland,  by  order  of  Governor 
Minuit,  wrote  a letter  to  Governor  Bradford,  of  Plymouth,  officially  inform- 
ing him  of  the  founding  of  a settlement  and  province  on  the  Mauritius  or 
Hudson’s  River,  and  assuring  him  that  the  Hollanders  wished  to  cultivate 
friendly  and  commercial  relations  with  the  Pilgrims.  Bradford  reciprocated 


240 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  IL 


these  friendly  professions,  but  in  his  reply  he  warned  the  Dutch  not  to 
occupy  or  to  trade  in  the  country  north  of  the  fortieth  degree  of  latitude,  as 
that  region  was  claimed  by  the  Council  of  New  England.  He  wished  to 
maintain  friendly  relations  with  New  Netherland,  and  proposed  not  to  molest 
the  Dutch  provided  they  would  refrain  from  trading  with  the  natives  on  the 
waters  at  the  very  doors  of  the  English.  Minuit  replied  courteously,  but 
firmly,  that  the  Dutch  had  a right  to  traffic  with  the  Narragansets  as  they 
had  done  for  years.  “ As  the  English  claim  authority  under  the  king  of 
England,”  said  Minuit,  “so  we  derive  ours  from  the  States-General  in  Hol- 
land.” Bradford  was  not  disposed  to  contend,  for  obvious  reasons.  “ For 
strength  of  men  and  fortification,”  he  wrote  to  the  Council  for  New  Eng- 
land, “ they  [the  Dutch]  far  excel  us  and  all  in  this  land.” 

Bradford  made  no  reply  to  Minuit’s  letter.  The  latter  finally  sent  a 
messenger  to  New  Plymouth  to  invite  the  governor  to  send  a deputy  to 
Manhattan  to  confer  orally  with  the  authorities  there.  The  messenger  took 
with  him  a “ rundlet  of  sugar  and  tw'o  Holland  cheeses”  as  a present  for 
Bradford,  who  entertained  him  generously  in  return.  It  w’as  agreed  that  a 
commission  should  be  sent  to  New  Plymouth  from  Manhattan  to  confer 
upon  all  matters  of  intercourse.  With  De  Rasieres  at  their  head,  such 
commissioners  sailed  in  a bark  laden  w'ith  wampum  and  other  things  for 
traffic,  and  when  they  landed  near  one  of  the  outposts  of  the  Plymouth 
colony,  the  echoes  of  the  forest  and  the  attention  of  the  Pilgrims  w’ere 
awakened  by  the  braying  of  trumpets  at  the  lips  of  sturdy  Dutchmen. 
With  the  same  noise  the  commissioners  entered  New  Plymouth.  They 
were  hospitably  entertained  for  several  days  at  the  table  of  the  governor, 
whereat  probably  sat  Elder  Brewster,  Miles  Standish,  Edward  Winslow, 
Dr.  Fuller  and  other  passengers  of  the  May-Flower.  There  the  commis- 
sioners attended  public  worship  on  the  Sabbath,  of  which  De  Rasieres  gave 
a vivid  account  in  a letter.  “They  assemble,”  he  said,  “ by  beat  of  drum, 
each  with  his  musket  or  fire-lock  in  front  of  the  captain’s  door.  They  have 
their  cloaks  on,  and  place  themselves  in  order,  three  abreast,  and  are  led  by 
a sergeant  without  beat  of  drum.  Behind  comes  the  governor  in  a long 
robe.  Beside  him,  on  the  right  hand,  comes  the  preacher,  with  his  cloak  on  ; 
on  the  left  hand  the  captain,  with  his  side-arms  and  his  cloak  on,  and  with  a 
small  cane  in  his  hand.  And  so  they  march  in  good  order,  and  each  sets  his 
arms  down  near  him.  Thus  they  are  constantly  on  their  guard,  night  and 
day,”  for  they  had  excited  the  anger  of  the  Indians. 

The  secretary  also  graphically  described  New  Plymouth.  “ It  lies  on  a 
slope,”  he  said.  “The  houses  are  constructed  of  hewn  planks,  with  gardens 
also  inclosed  behind  and  at  the  sides  with  hewn  timber;  so  that  their  houses 


PUBTJC  WORSHIP  AT  PLYMOUTH  BY  THE  PILGRIMS. 


Chap.  VI. 


A PICTURE  OF  PLYMOUTH. 


241 


and  court-yards  are  arranged  in  very  good  order,  with  a stockade  against  a 
sudden  attack.  At  the  ends  of  the  streets  are  three  wooden  gates.  In  the 
centre,  on  the  cross  street,  stands  the  governor’s  house,  before  which  is  a 
square  inclosure,  upon  which  four  swivels  are  mounted,  so  as  to  flank  along 
the  streets.  Upon  the  hill  they  have  a large  square  house  with  a flat  roof, 
made  of  thick  sawn  plank,  stayed  with  oak  beams ; upon  the  tops  of  which 
they  have  six  cannon,  which  shoot  iron  balls  of  four  and  five  pounds  weight, 
and  command  the  surrounding  country.  The  lower  part  they  use  for  their 
church,  where  they  preach  on  Sundays  and  the  usual  holidays.”  Such  was 
the  capital  of  the  English  colony  six  years  after  they  had  landed  from  the 
May-Flower,  and  at  the  time  of  the  embassy  of  Secretary  Rasieres.  That 


THE  DUTCH  ENTERING  NEW  PLYMOUTH. 


mission  opened  a_  profitable  trade  between  the  two  settlements,  and  led  to 
the  speedy  planting  of  an  English  colony  in  the  Valley  of  the  Connecticut. 

With  a keen  eye  to  self-interest,  the  Dutch  advised  the  Pilgrims  to  leave 
their  more  sterile  soil  and  make  their  home  in  the  beautiful  and  fertile 
country  on  the  banks  of  the  Fresh-Water  River,  under  the  jurisdiction  of 
New  Netherland.  The  fertility  of  that  region  was  set  forth  in  glowing 
terms ; and  the  stories  of  the  Dutch  were  confirmed  by  native  chiefs.  One 
of  these,  of  the  Mohegan  tribe,  whose  council  fire  was  on  the  eastern  bank 
of  the  Hudson,  visited  Governor  Winthrop,  of  Massachusetts,  in  1631,  and 
with  self-interest  as  strong  as  that  of  the  Dutch,  but  rather  more  artfully 
concealed,  he  urged  them  to  settle  in  the  Connecticut  Valley.  He  offered  to 
give  them  lands,  and  an  annual  tribute  of  corn  and  beaver  skins,  if  they 
would  do  so.  The  Mohegan  chief’s  prime  object  was  to  so  plant  a barrier 
between  his  people  and  the  powerful  and  warlike  Pequods,  whose  seat  was 
on  the  hills  that  stretch  between  New  London  and  Stonington.  The  Puri- 


242 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  II, 


tans  saw  the  selfish  policy  of  both  parties  under  the  thin  disguise  of  friend- 
ship, and  declined  to  move  in  a body.  They  would  not  consent  to  become 
subjects  of  the  Dutch  nor  to  be  made  shields  for  the  savages. 

The  stories  of  the  “pleasant  meadows”  along  the  Connecticut  River 
excited  the  attention  of  the  English,  and  in  1632  Edward  Winslow  visited 
that  region.  He  was  delighted  with  the  country,  and  confirmed  all  that 
Dutch  embassadors  and  traders  and  savage  chieftains  had  said  about  it. 
The  fame  of  it  had  already  reached  Old  England,  and  two  years  before 
Winslow’s  visit,  the  Council  for  New  England  had  granted  the  soil  of  that 
region  to  the  Earl  of  Warwick.  That  nobleman  conveyed  his  chartered 
rights  to  the  domain  to  other  parties  (Lords  Say  and  Seal,  Lord  Brook,  Mr. 
Saltonstall  and  others,)  in  1632.  In  that  conveyance  the  territory  was 
defined  as  extending,  “ in  a certain  width  throughout  the  main  lands  there, 
from  the  Western  [Atlantic]  Ocean  to  the  South  Sea  ” or  the  Pacific  Ocean. 
These  parties  did  not  take  immediate  steps  for  colonizing  the  Connecticut 
Valley,  and  the  ever-vigilant  Dutch  got  there  before  them.  The  Dutch  pur- 
chased the  territory  of  the  Indians,  the  rightful  owners,  and  Commissioner 
Van  Curler  completed  the  redoubt  already  begun  on  Dutch  Point,  named  it 
Fort  Good  Hope,  and  armed  it  with  cannon. 

Governor  Bradford  and  Edward  Winslow  visited  Governor  Winthrop  at 
Boston,  and  proposed  an  alliance  for  the  purpose  of  taking  immediate  pos- 
session of  the  valley.  Winthrop  refused  to  join  them  in  such  an  enterprise, 
but  thought  it  necessary,  in  some  formal  way,  to  assert,  promptly  and  firmly, 
the  jurisdiction  of  the  English  ov^er  that  now  coveted  region.  He  sent  his 
bark  the  Blessing  of  the  Bay  on  a trading  voyage  along  Long  Island  Sound, 
her  captain  bearing  a message  to  Manhattan,  declaring  that  the  “ King  of 
England  had  granted  the  river  and  country  of  Connecticut  to  his  own  sub- 
jects,” and  that  the  Dutch  must  “forbear  to  build  there.”  The  messenger 
and  his  companions  were  kindly  treated  by  Governor  Van  Twiller,  Minuit’s 
successor,  who,  in  a courteous  letter  to  Winthrop,  requested  him  to  defer  the 
“ pretense  or  claim  ” to  the  Connecticut  until  their  respective  governments 
should  agree  upon  the  limit  of  the  colonies.  At  the  same  time  Van  Twiller 
informed  Winthrop  that  the  Dutch  had  already  purchased  the  soil  and  “ set 
up  a house  with  intent  to  plant.” 

These  Dutchmen  and  initial  “Yankees”  were  now  playing  a sharp  game 
in  diplomacy,  with  soft  words.  The  Yankees  outwitted  the  Dutchmen,  and 
the  Plymouth  people  outgeneraled  those  at  Boston  at  first.  At  Plymouth 
was  a company  of  “banished  Indians” — families  driven  from  the  Connecti- 
cut Valley,  with  their  chief,  by  the  Pequods.  From  these  the  Plymouth 
settlers  purchased  a tract  of  land  above  Fort  Good  Hope.  They  prepared  a 


Chap.  VI. 


DUTCH  AND  ENGLISH  IN  CONNECTICUT. 


243 


house  of  wood,  which  they  stowed  in  pieces  on  board  of  a bark  commanded 
by  Captain  William  Holmes.  In  this  bark  sailed  the  fugitive  savages  and 
some  Englishmen,  and  went  up  the  Connecticut  River.  When  they 
approached  Fort  Good  Hope,  the  commander  of  the  fort  hailed  the  little 
craft  and  demanded  of  Captain  Holmes  whither  he  was  going,  and  for  what 
purpose.  “Up  the  river  to  trade  ! ” answered  the  skipper.  This  little  fib 
did  not  satisfy  the  suspicious  Dutchmen,  who  rightly  supposed  that  the 
intruders  had  orders  to  settle  rather  than  to  trade.  “ Heave  to ! ” shouted 
the  commander  of  the  garrison  standing  by  the  side  of  a heavy  gun,  “ or  I’ll 
shoot.’’  “I  must  obey  my 
commands,’’  said  the  in- 
trepid Holmes,  and  sailed 
by.  The  Dutchmen  blus- 
tered, but  did  not  shoot. 

The  English  landed  above  ; 
hastily  erected  the  house 
they  had  brought  with 
them,  and  took  possession 
of  the  country.  They 
sent  the  bark  back,  pali- 
saded their  house,  and  pre- 
pared to  maintain  their 
position.  This  house  was 
built  on  the  site  of  Wind- 
sor, in  Connecticut.  So 
was  begun  the  first  Eng- 
lish settlement  in  that 
region  in  the  autumn  of 

1633- 

When  Van  Twiller 
heard  of  this  impertinent 
intrusion,  he  sent  to  Van 
Curler,  at  Good  Hope,  a protest  to  be  delivered  to  Holmes,  and  a per- 
emptory order  for  the  latter  to  “ depart  forthwith  with  all  his  people  and 
houses’’ — from  that  Dutch  domain.  “ I am  here,”  replied  Holmes,  “in  the 
name  of  the  King  of  England,  whose  servant  I am,  and  here  I will  remain.” 
Van  Twiller  stormed  at  this  defiance,  but  prudently  referred  the  matter  to 
his  superiors  at  Amsterdam.  Before  an  answer  could  arrive,  the  subject 
became  mixed  with  another  of  a serious  nature.  A Captain  Stone  had  been 
on  a trading  voyage  from  Massachusetts  to  Virginia,  and  on  his  return  ran 


VVINTHROP  AND  VAN  TWILLEr’s  LETTER. 


244 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  II. 


into  and  up  the  Connecticut  River  to  traffic  with  the  Dutch  garrison  at  Good 
Hope.  He  and  his  companions  were  treacherously  seized  and  murdered  by 
Pequods  on  the  banks  of  the  stream.  This  crime  was  soon  followed  by  the 
massacre  of  some  Indians  friendly  to  the  Dutch.  Then  Van  Curler  seized  a 
guilty  old  sachem  and  some  of  his  followers,  and  hanged  them.  This  exas- 
perated the  Pequods.  They  flew  to  arms  and  declared  war  against  the 
Dutch.  They  sought  the  friendship  of  the  English,  and  for  this  purpose 
they  sent  four  or  five  ambassadors  to  Boston  to  negotiate  a treaty.  These 
ambassadors  appeared  before  the  governor  in  all  the  barbaric  splendor  of 
paint  and  rich  skins,  gorgeous  feathers  and  rude  ornaments.  A treaty  was 
made  which  provided  that  the  Pequods,  in  consideration  of  the  passive 
friendship  of  the  English,  were  to  surrender  to  the  latter  the  Connecticut 
Valley  and  the  remaining  two  murderers  of  Captain  Stone’s  party,  and  pay 
a large  tribute  of  wampum  and  beaver-skins.  So  Winthrop  gained  a great 
advantage  over  Bradford  in  the  accession  of  territory,  and  both  parties  won 
powerful  allies,  as  they  supposed,  in  the  work  of  expelling  the  Dutch  from 
the  Connecticut  Valley.  At  the  same  time,  the  position  and  security  of  the 
settlers  at  Windsor  were  strengthened. 

At  about  this  time.  Van  Twiller  received  instructions  from  Amsterdam, 
to  maintain  possession  of  the  Connecticut  at  ail  hazards.  He  sent  seventy 
men  with  arquebuses,  swords,  trumpets,  and  banners  to  dislodge  the  settlers 
at  Windsor.  The  latter  made  a bold  stand.  After  much  blustering  and  a 
great  deal  of  noise,  there  was  a parley,  when  the  Dutch  withdrew  and 
friendly  relations  were  established.  The  region  was  opened  for  an  influx  of 
immigrants  from  Massachusetts  Bay.  Permission  for  such  immigration  was 
given  by  the  authorities  there,  without  any  territorial  restraints.  The  ques- 
tion to  whom  does  the  Valley  of  the  Connecticut  belong — to  the  Dutch, 
the  Pilgrims  at  Plymouth,  the  Puritans  at  Boston,  or  to  the  savages?  was 
not  considered  ; and  in  the  autumn  of  1635,  sixty  men,  women,  and  children 
from  the  Puritan  settlements  journeyed  westward  through  the  forests  to 
join  the  colony  planted  by  Holmes  at  Windsor.  During  the  previous  sum- 
mer, a few  pioneers  had  explored  the  country.  They  went  from  Dorchester 
and  Watertown  to  the  beautiful  valley,  and  their  report  stimulated  emigra- 
tion. 

The  exodus  from  Massachusetts  Bay  began  late  in  October,  when  frost 
and  snow-flurries  were  prophesying  of  an  early  coming  of  winter.  With 
oxen  for  tillage  and  beasts  of  burden,  and  cows  for  the  production  of  food, 
these  emigrants  made  their  way  on  foot  through  the  pathless  woods  a hun- 
dred miles  or  more,  sometimes  wading  miry  swamps,  sometimes  climbing 
rugged  hills  or  fording  swift  streams,  the  men  carrying  the  smaller  children. 


Chap.  VI. 


EMIGRATION  TO  CONNECTICUT. 


245 


and  the  larger  ones  with  their  mothers  trudging  after.  At  the  end  of  a 
wearisome  journey  of  a month’s  duration,  they  descended  into  the  Connec- 
ticut Valley,  then  white  with  snow,  and  found  the  river  so  hard  frozen  that 
a vessel  which  had  been  sent  with  supplies  could  not  ascend  it.  It  never 
tried  to  navigate  that  stream,  for  it  was  wrecked  on  the  rocks  near  Point 
Judith  in  a gale. 

At  Wethersfield,  and  on  the  site  of  Hartford,  these  immigrants  built  log 
huts  in  the  snow,  and  there  they  passed  a dreary,  bitter  winter  in  great  pri- 
vation, for  a vessel  in  which  had  been  sent  clothing  and  household  furniture. 


EMIGRANTS  ON  THEIR  WAV  TO  THE  CONNECTICUT. 


was  kept  back  by  the  ice.  Snow  fell  to  a great  depth.  Many  cattle  suffered 
and  perished  from  want  of  food,  and  the  settlers  were  threatened  with  the 
horrors  of  famine.  In  the  face  of  this  impending  peril  many  of  them  made 
their  way  to  the  mouth  of  the  river  in  the  vain  expectation  of  finding  their 
food-bearing  vessel,  which,  alas ! had  been  beaten  into  pieces  on  the  rocks. 


246 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  II. 


When  almost  despairing,  another  vessel  appeared,  in  which  they  sailed  to 
Boston.  The  settlers  whom  they  left  behind  subsisted  much  of  the  time  upon 
acorns,  Indian  corn  and  malt,  until  the  spring  opened  and  supplies  were  sent  to 
them  from  Massachusetts,,  then  rapidly  filling  with  emigrants.  Twenty  ves- 
sels had  brought  three  thousand  colonists  to  its  shores  during  the  year  1635. 

Governor  Winthrop’s  son  John,  then  twenty-nine  years  of  age,  arrived  at 
Boston  from  England  in  October.  He  bore  a commission  as  governor  of  the 
Connecticut  territory,  from  the  proprietors  of  the  soil.  With  him  came  Hugh 
Peters,  his  senior  by  si.x  years,  and  Henry  Vane,  only  twenty-four  years  of 
age,  who  were  joint  commissioners  with  him,  instructed  to  build  a fort  and 
plant  a colony  at  the  mouth  of  the  Connecticut  River.  They  were  directed 
to  gather  the  scattered  settlers  near  the  fort ; but  these  were  left  where  they 
had  planted  themselves.  Other  measures  were  taken  to  secure  the  posses- 
sion of  the  territory  and  peace  of  the  colony.  Governor  Bradford  had 
denounced  as  “an  unrighteous  and  injurious  intrusion,”  the  settling  of 
Massachusetts  people  upon  the  lands  on  the  Connecticut  which  the  Plym- 
outh people  had  purchased  from  the  Indians,  not  considering  that  the 
“ Plymothians,”  as  the  Dutch  called  them,  were  equally  intruders  upon  the 
territory  of  New  Netherland,  according  to  English  doctrine.  And  the  Con- 
necticut commissioners  perfected  their  usurpation  of  the  territorial  authority 
of  the  Netherlands  by  driving  away,  by  force  of  arms,  a Dutch  vessel  which 
came  into  the  river  to  protect  the  rights  of  the  West  India  Company. 
“ Might  makes  right,”  was  the  stern  rule  among  the  nations  then  ; and  the 
cannon  at  the  mouth  of  the  river  gave  a warrant  for  the  more  important  emi- 
gration of  the  English  to  the  Connecticut  Valley,  which  occurred  in  the  sum- 
mer of  1636.  The  dispute  with  the  Plymouth  people  was  amicably  settled. 

Arrangements  having  been  made  for  the  accommodation  of  new  settlers 
on  the  site  of  Hartford,  the  Rev.  Thomas  Hooker,  a zealous  non-conformist 
minister,  who  came  to  Boston  from  his  refuge  in  Holland,  in  1633,  led  a 
company  of  one  hundred  men,  women,  and  children  thither  in  the  summer 
of  1636.  He  was  accompanied  by  the  Rev.  Mr.  Stone.  Their  followers 
consisted  of  their  families  and  congregations.  The  emigrants  drove  before 
them  one  hundred  and  sixty  head  of  cattle.  The  cows  of  the  herd,  pastur- 
ing in  grassy  savannas  which  they  found  on  the  way,  gave  them  an  ample 
supply  of  fresh  milk.  They  had  no  pathway,  and  were  guided  only  by  a 
compass.  Through  thickets  and  morasses,  and  over  streams  they  made 
their  way,  clearing  away  here  with  axes,  making  causeways  and  bridges  there 
with  felled  trees,  and  resting  in  shady  groves.  The  women  and  children' 
were  conveyed  in  wagons  drawn  by  oxen,  and  Mrs.  Hooker,  who  was  an 
invalid,  was  carried  on  a horse  litter. 


Chap.  VI. 


IMPENDING  DANGERS. 


24/ 


The  company  had  ample  provisions  and  were  regaled  on  the  way  by 
delicious  strawberries  growing  in  abundance  in  open  places.  The  songs  of 
birds  and  the  fragrance  of  flowers  afforded  them  exquisite  delight  in  the 
midst  of  the  weariness  of  travel.  They  made  easy  stages,  consuming  a fort- 
night in  the  journey  of  a hundred  miles.  It  was  ended  when,  on  the  fourth 
of  July,  they  stood  on  the  beautiful  banks  of  the  Connecticut,  under  the 
shadows  of  great  trees  and  trailing  vines,  and  sang  hymns  of  praise  to  the 
Good  Father.  On  the  following  Sabbath,  Mr.  Hooker  preached  and  admin- 
istered the  Lord’s  Supper  in  the  little  chapel  on  the  site  of  Hartford,  which 
the  first  colonists  there  had  erected.  Some  of  the  new  comers  settled  at 
Wethersfield,  and  others  went  further  up  the  river  and  founded  Springfield. 
There  were  now  five  feeble  settlements  in  the  Connecticut  Valley.  One  of 
these  was  near  the  fort  at  the  mouth  of  the  river,  and  in  honor  of  two  of 
the  proprietors  of  the  territory.  Lords  Say  and  Brook,  it  was  called  Say- 
Brook. 

In  the  very  morning  of  this  colonial  era  of  Connecticut,  dark  clouds 
gathered  black  and  threatening,  and  for  awhile  a storm  impended  which 
seemed  ready  to  sweep  the  little  settlements  from  the  face  of  the  earth  in  a 
moment.  The  fiery  Pequods  had  become  jealous  of  the  English  because  the 
latter  appeared  to  be  on  friendly  terms  with  the  Mohegans  on  the  west  and 
the  Narragansets  on  the  east,  the  bitter  enemies  of  this  warlike  tribe. 
Over  the  Pequods,  a famous  sachem  and  chief  named  Sassacus  was  ruler. 
He  was  cool,  calculating,  treacherous,  haughty,  fierce  and  malignant,  and  he 
was  the  terror  of  the  neighboring  tribes.  He  ruled  over  twenty-six  saga- 
mores or  inferior  princes,  and  his  domain  extended  from  Narraganset  Bay 
to  the  Hudson  River,  and  over  Long  Island.  His  bravery  won  the  un- 
bounded admiration  of  his  warriors,  of  whom  almost  two  thousand  were 
always  ready  to  follow  him  wheresoever  he  might  lead.  Seeing  the  power 
of  the  few  English  in  garrison  at  Saybrook,  and  dreading  the  strength  and 
influence  of  more  who  would  undoubtedly  join  them,  he  resolved  to  exter- 
minate the  intruders.  By  every  art  of  persuasion  and  menace,  he  tried  to 
induce  the  Mohegans  and  Narragansets  to  become  his  allies.  The  united 
tribes  could  put  four  thousand  men  on  the  war-path  at  one  time,  while 
among  all  the  English  in  the  Connecticut  Valley,  there  were  not  more  than 
two  hundred  and  fifty  men  capable  of  bearing  arms.  How  easily  might 
those  fierce  pagans  have  annihilated  the  pale-faced  Christians  ! 

The  Pequods  moved  cautiously.  At  first  they  were  sullen.  Then  they 
kidnapped  children  ; and  finally  they  murdered  Englishmen  found  alone  in 
the  forests  or  on  the  waters,  and  destroyed  or  made  captive  families  on  the 
borders  of  the  settlements.  It  was  evident  that  they  intended  to  extermi- 

17 


;48 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  II. 


nate  the  white  people  in  detail,  and  terror  prevailed  throughout  the  valley. 
This  was  heightened  by  the  capture  of  a Massachusetts  trading  vessel  by  the 
allies  of  the  Pequods  on  Block  Island,  killing  the  commander  and  plundering 
the  vessel. 

The  authorities  at  Boston  determined  to  punish  the  Pequods  and  awe 
them  into  quietude.  For  this  purpose  they  sent  a small  military  force,  in 
three  vessels,  into  Long  Island  Sound.  This  force  killed  some  Indians  on 


ATTACK  ON  THE  INDIANS  ON  BLOCK  ISLAND. 


Block  Island,  burnt  their  wigwams,  broke  their  canoes  in  pieces,  and  cut 
down  their  growing  corn.  Then  they  went  over  to  the  Pequod  country  on 
the  main,  where  they  made  demands  which  they  could  not  enforce,  burnt 
some  wigwams,  destroyed  crops,  and  killed  a few  people.  The  expedition, 
weak  in  numbers  and  injudiciously  conducted,  was  looked  upon  with  con- 


Chap.  VI. 


GOOD  FOR  EVIL. 


249 


tempt  by  the  savages,  and  intensified  their  hatred  of  the  white  intruders. 
They  sent  ambassadors  to  the  monarch  of  the  Narragansets  urging  him  to 
join  them  at  once  in  a war  of  extermination,  declaring,  as  a powerful  plea, 
that  the  two  races  could  not  live  together  in  the  same  land,  and  that  the 
Indians,  who  would  soon  be  the  weaker  party,  would  be  scattered  and  de- 
stroyed like  leaves  in  autumn. 

At  this  critical  juncture,  a deliverer  appeared  in  the  person  of  Roger 
Williams,  a Puritan  minister,  who  had  been  driven  out  of  Massachusetts  by 
persecution  and  had  taken  refuge  in  the  land  of  the  Narragansets,  who  soon 
learned  to  love  and  respect  him.  He  heard  of  the  proposed  alliance  and 
perceived  the  danger.  Unmindful  of  the  cruel  wrongs  he  had  suffered  at  the 
hands  of  his  Puritan  brethren,  he  hastened  in  an  open  boat  on  a stormy  day, 
across  Narraganset  Bay,  to  the  dwelling  of  Miantonomoh  near  the  site  of 
Newport,  on  Rhode  Island.  He  was  the  acting  chief  sachem  of  the  Nar- 
ragansets (for  his  uncle,  Canonicus,  the  chief,  was  very  old),  and  was  revered 
by  them  all.  There  Williams  found  fierce  ambassadors  from  Sassacus, 
urging  their  suit,  and  at  the  peril  of  his  life  he  opposed  them  with  arguments. 
“ Three  days  and  nights,”  Williams  wrote  to  Major  Mason,  “ my  business 
forced  me  to  lodge  and  mix  with  the  bloody  Pequod  ambassadors,  whose 
hands  and  arms,  methought,  reeked  with  the  blood  of  my  countrymen,  mur- 
dered and  massacred  by  them  on  Connecticut  River,  and  from  whom  I could 
not  but  nightly  look  for  their  bloody  knives  at  my  own  throat,  also.”  Wil- 
liams prevailed.  He  not  only  prevented  the  alliance,  but  induced  Narragan- 
set chiefs  to  go  to  Boston,  where  they  concluded  a treaty  of  peace  and 
alliance  with  the  colonists.  So  the  Pequods  were  not  only  compelled  to 
carry  on  their  proposed  war  alone,  but  to  fight  the  Narragansets. 

This  failure  did  not  dishearten  the  Pequods.  They  kept  the  settlements 
on  the  Connecticut  in  a state  of  constant  fear,  all  the  autumn  and  winter. 
They  plundered  and  murdered  whenever  opportunities  offered.  Barns  were 
fired  and  cattle  were  killed  by  them ; and  the  murders  were  sometimes 
accompanied  by  the  most  horrid  atrocities.  Finally,  a band  of  a hundred 
Pequods  attacked  Wethersfield,  killed  seven  men,  a woman  and  a child,  and 
carried  away  two  girls.  They  had  now  slain  more  than  thirty  of  the  Eng- 
lish, and  the  settlers  were  compelled  to  choose  between  flight  and  destruc- 
tion, or  war  and  possible  salvation.  They  resolved  to  fight,  having  promise 
of  aid  from  the  eastern  colonies. 

At  this  time  there  were  in  the  colonies  two  brave  soldiers  who  had  served 
in  the  Netherlands.  These  were  Captains  John  Mason  and  John  Underhill. 
The  former  had  taken  an  active  part  in  military  and  civil  aflairs  in  Massachu- 
setts, and  was  now  in  Connecticut.  The  latter  was  an  eccentric  character. 


250 


OUR  COUNTRY, 


Book  II. 


and  might  have  been  mistaken  at  one  time  for  a friar  and  at  another  for  a 
buffoon.  He  had  been  brought  to  Massachusetts  by  Governor  Winthrop  to 
teach  the  young  colonists  military  tactics,  which  it  was  evident  they  would 
need.  Under  him  the  authorities  of  that  colony  and  Plymouth  placed  two 
hundred  men  to  aid  the  Connecticut  people  in  their  war. 

It  was  not  safe  for  the  settlers  in  the  valley  to  wait  for  their  allies  on  the' 
sea-coast.  They  placed  ninety  men  under  Mason,  who  rendezvoused  at 
Hartford.  With  twenty  of  them,  the  captain  hastened  to  reinforce  the  gar- 
rison at  Saybrook.  There  he  found  Underhill,  who  had  just  arrived  with  an 
equal  number  of  men.  Mason  hurried  back,  assembled  his  whole  force,  and 
with  these  and  seventy  warriors  of  the  Mohegans  under  Uncas,  he  marched 
down  to  the  lort.  Uncas  was  of  the  royal  blood  of  the  Pequods,  and  had 
been  a petty  chief  under  Sassacus,  but  was  now  in  open  rebellion  against  his 
prince,  and  a fugitive.  He  gladly  joined  the  English  against  his  enemy,  and 
Captain  Mason  as  gladly  accepted  his  services.  As  the  war  was  begun  by 
the  Connecticut  people.  Captain  Mason  was  regarded  and  obeyed  as  the 
•commander-in-chief  of  the  expedition. 

It  was  determined  in  council  to  go  into  the  Narraganset  country  and 
march  upon  the  rear  of  the  Pequods,  where  they  would  least  expect  an 
attack.  In  three  pinnaces  the  expedition  sailed  eastward.  As  they  passed 
the  Pequod  country,  those  savages  concluded  that  the  English  had  aban- 
doned the  Connecticut  Valley  in  despair.  It  was  a fatal  mistake;  and  the 
relaxation  which  that  belief  caused,  ruined  them.  They  had  no  spies  out 
beyond  the  Mystic  River ; and  when  the  expedition  landed  near  Narragan- 
set Bay,  Sassacus  was  rejoicing  in  a sense  of  absolute  security  from  harm. 
So  he  continued  to  rejoice  while  the  white  people,  joined  by  two  hundred 
Narragansets  and  as  many  Niantics — more  than  five  hundred  warriors  in  all, 
pale  and  dusky — were  marching  swiftly  and  stealthily  toward  the  citadel  of 
his  power. 

That  chief  stronghold  of  Sassacus  was  on  a hill  a few  miles  northward 
from  both  New  London  and  Stonington,  near  the  waters  of  the  Mystic 
River.  It  was  a fort  built  of  palisades,  the  trunks  of  trees  set  firmly  in  the 
ground  close  together,  and  rising  above  it  ten  or  twelve  feet,  with  sharpened 
points.  Within  this  inclosure,  which  was  of  circular  form,  were  seventy 
wigwams  covered  with  matting  and  thatch ; and  at  two  points  were  sally- 
ports or  gates  of  weaker  construction,  through  which  Mason  and  Underhill 
were  destined  to  force  an  entrance.  When  the  invaders  reached  the  foot  of 
the  hill  on  which  this  fort  stood,  quite  undiscovered,  and  arranged  their 
camp,  the  sentinels  could  hear  the  sounds  of  noisy  revelry  among  the  sav- 
ages in  the  fortress,  which  ceased  not  before  midnight.  Then  all  was  still. 


Chap.  VI. 


DESTRUCTION  OF  THE  PEQUODS. 


251 


and  the  invaders  slumbered  soundly.  At  two  hours  before  the  dawn  on  a 
warm  June  morning,  they  were  aroused  from  sleep  and  arranged  in  marching 
order  so  as  to  break  into  the  fort  at  opposite  points  and  take  it  by  surprise. 
The  Indian  allies  had  grown  weak  in  heart,  all  but  the  followers  of  Uncas. 
They  regarded  Sassacus  as  a sort  of  god,  and  supposed  he  was  in  the  fort. 
So  they  lagged  behind,  but  formed  a cordon  in  the  woods  around  the  fortress 
to  arrest  any  fugitives  who  might  escape. 

In  the  bright  moonlight  the  little  army  crept  stealthily  up  the  wooded 
slope,  and  were  on  the  point  of  rushing  to  the  attack  when  the  barking  of  a 
dog  aroused  a sentinel  and  he  gave  the  alarm  to  the  sound  sleepers  within. 
Before  they  were  fairly  awake.  Mason  and  Underhill  burst  in  the  sallyports. 
The  terrified  Pequods  rushed  out  of  the  wigwams,  but  were  driven  back  by 
swords  and  musket-balls,  when  the  tinder-like  coverings  of  the  huts  were  set 
on  fire.  Within  an  hour  about  seven  hundred  men,  women  and  children 
perished  in  the  flames,  and  by  the  weapons  of  the  English.  The  strong, 
the  beautiful,  and  the  innocent  were  doomed  to  a common  fate  with  the 
blood-thirsty  and  cruel.  The  door  of  mercy  was  shut.  Not  a dusky  human 
being  among  the  Pequods  was  allowed  to  live.  When  all  was  over,  the  pious 
Captain  Mason,  who  had  narrowly  escaped  death  by  the  arrow  of  a young 
warrior,  exultingly  exclaimed  : “ God  is  over  us  ! He  laughs  his  enemies  to 
scorn,  making  them  as  a fiery  oven.  Thus  does  the  Lord  judge  among  the 
heathen,  filling  the  place  with  dead  bodies.”  And  the  equally  if  not  more 
pious  Dr.  Mather  afterward  wrote:  “It  was  supposed  that  no  less  than  500 
or  600  Pequod  souls  were  brought  down  to  hell  that  day.”  Happily  a better 
Christian  spirit  now  prevails. 

Sassacus  was  not  in  the  doomed  fort,  but  was  at  another  near  Groton,  on 
the  Thames,  to  which  point  Mason  had  ordered  his  vessels  to  come.  As  the 
English  were  making  their  wearisome  way  to  the  river,  three  hundred  war- 
riors came  from  the  presence  of  Sassacus  to  attack  them.  The  savages  were 
soon  dispersed.  Most  of  the  victors  then  sailed  for  the  Connecticut,  making 
the  air  vocal  with  sacred  song.  The  remainder,  with  friendly  Indians, 
marched  through  the  wilderness  to  Hartford  to  protect  the  settlements  in 
that  vicinity.  There  warriors  and  clergymen,  Christians  and  pagans,  women 
and  children,  gathered  in  a happy  reunion  after  great  peril. 

Sassacus  sate  sullenly  and  stately  in  his  embowered  dwelling,  when  the 
remnant  of  his  warriors,  who  escaped  from  the  citadel,  came  to  tell  him  of 
the  great  disaster.  They  charged  the  whole  of  the  misfortunes  of  the  day  to 
his  haughtiness  and  misconduct.  Tearing  their  hair,  stamping  violently,  and 
with  fierce  gestures,  they  threatened  to  destroy  him,  and  doubtless  they 
would  have  executed  the  menace  had  not  the  blast  of  a trumpet  startled 


252 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  II. 


them.  From  the  head-waters  of  the  Mystic  came  almost  two  hundred 
armed  settlers  from  Massachusetts  and  Plymouth  to  seal  the  doom  of  the 
Pequods.  The  question,  Shall  we  fight  or  flee?  was  soon  answered  at  the 
court  of  Sassacus,  for  there  was  little  time  for  deliberation.  After  a strong 
and  hot  debate,  it  was  determined  to  flee.  They  set  fire  to  their  wigwams 
and  the  fort,  and  with  their  women  and  children  hurried  across  the  Thames 
and  fled  swiftly  westward,  with  the  intention  of  seeking  refuge  with  the 
Mohawks  beyond  the  Hudson. 

The  English  hotly  pursued  the  Pequods,  with  despairing  Sassacus  at 
their  head.  As  the  chase  was  kept  up  across  the  beautiful  countr)^  border- 
ing on  Long  Island  Sound,  a track  of  desolation  was  left  behind,  for  wig- 
wams and  cornfields  were  destroyed,  and  helpless  men,  women  and  children 
were  put  to  the  sword.  At  last  the  fugitives  took  refuge  in  Sasco  Swamp, 
near  Fairfield,  where  they  all  surrendered  to  the  English  excepting  the 
sachem  and  a few  followers,  who  escaped  to  the  Mohawks.  A blow  nad 
been  struck  which  gave  peace  to  New  England  forty  years.  A nation  had 
been  destroyed  in  a day.  But  few  of  the  once-powerful  Pequods  survived  the 
national  disaster.  The  last  representative  of  the  pure  blood  of  that  race  was, 
probably,  Eunice  Mauwee,  who  died  at  Kent,  in  Connecticut,  about  the  year 
i860,  at  the  age  of  one  hundred  years.  The  proud  Sassacus,  haughty  and 
insolent  in  his  exile,  fell  by  the  hands  of  an  assassin  among  the  people  who 
had  opened  their  arms  to  receive  him  ; and  his  scalp  was  sent  to  the  Eng- 
lish, whom  he  hated  and  despised.  He  was  the  last  of  his  royal  line  in 
power  excepting  Uncas,  who  now  returned  to  the  land  of  his  fathers  and 
became  a powerful  sachem,  renowned  in  war  and  peace.  He  remained  a 
firm  friend  of  the  English,  and  was  buried  among  the  graves  of  his  kindred 
near  the  falls  of  the  Yantic,  in  the  City  of  Norwich,  where  a granite  monu- 
ment, erected  by  the  descendants  of  his  white  friends,  marks  the  place  of 
his  sepulchre. 


CHAPTER  VII. 


A SETTLEMENT  BEGUN  AT  NEW  HAVEN — A PECULIAR  GOVERNMENT  ESTABLISHED  THERE — THE 
DUTCH  AND  ENGLISH  AT  VARIANCE  IN  THE  CONNECTICUT  VALLEY — A GOVERNMENT  FORMED 
AT  HARTFORD — ROGER  WILLIAMS  IN  MASSACHUSETTS — HIS  BANISHMENT — WILLIAMS  AND 
OTHERS  FOUND  PROVIDENCE — RHODE  ISLAND  SETTLED — FORM  OF  GOVERNMENT  THERE — 
ANNE  HUTCHINSON  AND  OTHERS  DRIVEN  FROM  MASSACHUSETTS — WILLIAMS  OBTAINS  A 
CHARTER  FOR  RHODE  ISLAND — INTOLERANCE  IN  MASSACHUSETTS — RECEPTION  OF  WILLIAMS 
ON  HIS  RETURN  FROM  ENGLAND. 

HEN  peace  and  security  were  established  in  the  Connecticut 
region  after  the  destruction  of  the  Pequods  in  the  summer  of 
1637,  a desire  for  emigrating  thither  was  revived.  At  about 
that  time  several  gentlemen  destined  to  occupy  conspicuous  places  in  history 
as  founders  of  a state  arrived  at  Boston.  These  were  Rev.  John  Davenport, 
a popular  Puritan  preacher  of  London,  who  had  been  persecuted  by  Arch- 
bishop Laud  and  taken  refuge  in  Rotterdam.  Another  was  Theophilus 
Eaton,  an  opulent  London  merchant  and  member  of  Mr.  Davenport’s  con- 
gregation ; and  a third  was  Edward  Hopkins,  another  rich  London  merchant 
and  member  of  the  same  society.  They  were  much  attached  to  Mr.  Daven- 
port, and  gladly  came  to  share  his  voluntary  exile  from  his  native  land. 

At  the  time  of  the  arriv^al  of  these  gentlemen,  society  in  Massachusetts 
was  violently  agitated  by  bitter  theological  discussions,  which  will  be  noticed 
hereafter.  Mr.  Davenport  and  his  friends  belonged  to  a school  who  sought 
to  carry  out  in  practice  the  idea  of  finding  in  the  Scriptures  a special  rule 
for  everything  in  church  and  state.  For  the  purpose  of  trying  an  experi- 
ment in  government  on  the  basis  of  that  idea,  they  desired  an  unoccupied 
field.  From  some  of  those  who  pursued  the  fugitive  Pequods  along  the 
country  bordering  on  Long  Island  Sound,  they  heard  of  the  beauty  and  fer- 
tility of  that  region,  and  early  in  the  autumn  Mr.  Eaton  and  a small  party 
visited  the  country.  He  was  charmed  with  a harbor  on  the  north  side  of 
the  Sound  ; and  on  the  banks  of  a stream,  which  the  Indians  called  Quinni- 
piack,  he  erected  a hut,  where  some  of  the  party  passed  the  winter  to  try 
the  climate.  That  was  on  the  site  of  New  Haven,  Connecticut.  The  place 
had  been  called  by  the  Dutch  navigator.  Block,  who  had  anchored  in  the 


254 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  II. 


harbor,  “ Roodenberg  ” or  Red  Hills,  in  allusion  to  the  red  cliffs  a little 
inland. 


NEW  HAVEN  IN  1637. 


In  the  spring  of  1638,  Mr.  Dav^enport  and  his  friends  sailed  for  Quinni- 
piack,  where  they  arrived  at  the  middle  of  April.  They  were  accompanied 
by  a number  of  followers,  mostly  persons  from  London  who  had  been  en- 
gaged in  trade ; and  in  proportion  to  their  number,  they  formed  the  richest 
colony  in  America.  They  spent  their  first  Sabbath  there — a warm  April 
day — mostly  under  the  shadow  of  a great  oak,  where  Mr.  Davenport 
preached  a sermon  on  the  subject  of  Jesus  being  led  into  the  wilderness. 
They  purchased  the  land  of  the  Indians  and  proceeded  to  plant  the  seeds  of 
a new  state  by  framing  articles  of  association,  which  they  called  a “ Planta- 
tion Covenant,”  according  to  their  peculiar  ideas.  In  it  they  resolved 
“ that,  as  in  matters  that  concern  the  gathering  and  ordering  of  a church,  so 
likewise  in  all  public  offices  which  concern  civil  order,  as  choice  of  magis- 
trates and  officers,  making  and  repealing  of  laws,  dividing  allotments  of 
inheritance,  and  all  things  of  like  nature,”  they  would  “ be  ordered  by  the 
rules  which  the  Scriptures  held  forth.”  So  they  began  their  settlement 
without  any  reference  to  any  government  or  community  on  the  face  of  the 
earth.  The  place  where  the  first  hut  was  built  was  on  the  present  corner  of 
Church  and  George  Streets,  New  Haven,  and  the  spot  whereon  stood  the 
oak  tree — their  first  temple  for  worship — was  at  the  intersection  of  George 
and  College  Streets. 


Chap.  VII. 


THE  NEW  HAVEN  COLONY. 


255 


For  about  a year  this  little  community  endeavored  to  learn  by  experience, 
from  reflection,  and  light  from  Heaven  through  the  medium  of  prayer,  what 
would  be  the  best  kind  of  social  and  political  organization  for  the  govern- 
ment of  the  colony.  They  talked  together  much,  and  early  in  the  summer 
of  1639  they  were  nearly  or  quite  all  of  one  mind.  Then  they  assembled  in 
a barn — all  the  “ free  planters  ” — to  compare  views  and  settle  upon  a plan 
of  civil  government  according  to  the  word  of  God.  Mr.  Davenport  prayed 
earnestly,  and  preached  from  the  text : “ Wisdom  hath  builded  her  house ; 
she  hath  hewn  out  her  seven  pillars.”  In  his  discourse,  he  showed  the  fit- 
ness of  choosing  seven  competent  men  to  construct  the  government ; and  he 
then  proposed  for  their  adoption  four  fundamental  articles:  (i)  That  the 
Scriptures  contain  a perfect  rule  for  the  government  of  men  in  the  family, 
in  the  church,  and  in  the  commonwealth  ; (2)  That  they  would  be  ordered 
by  the  rules  which  the  Scriptures  held  forth ; (3)  That  their  purpose  was  to 
be  admitted  into  church-fellowship,  according  to  Christ,  as  soon  as  God 
should  fit  them  thereunto ; and  (4)  That  they  held  themselves  bound  to 
establish  such  civil  order,  according  to  God,  as  would  be  likely  to  secure  the 
greatest  good  to  themselves  and  their  posterity. 

These  articles  were  unanimously  adopted,  when  Mr.  Davenport  presented 
two  other  articles  designed  to  put  into  practical  operation  the  theories  of  the 
other  four.  These  were  (i)  That  church  membership  only  should  be  free- 
burgesses  or  freemen  endowed  with  political  franchises,  and  that  they  only 
should  choose  magistrates,  and  transact  civil  public  business  of  every  kind  ; 
2)  That  twelve  or  more  men  should  be  chosen  from  the  company  and  tried 
("or  their  fitness,  and  these  twelve  should  choose  seven  of  their  number  as 
the  seven  pillars  of  the  church.  These  articles  were  subscribed  by  sixty- 
three  persons  present,  and  soon  afterward  by  fifty  others. 

The  twelve  men  were  chosen,  and  after  due  deliberation  they  selected 
the  “ seven  pillars.”  After  another  pause,  these  “ pillars  ” proceeded  to 
organize  a church.  Their  assistants,  nine  in  number,  were  regarded  as 
freemen  or  “ free  burgesses,”  and  the  sixteen  elected  Theophilus  Eaton  as 
magistrate  for  one  year.  Four  other  persons  were  chosen  to  be  deputies,  and 
these  constituted  the  executive  and  legislative  departments  of  the  new-born 
state  of  Quinnipiack.  To  these  Mr.  Davenport  gave  a “charge,”  grounded 
upon  Deuteronomy  i.  16,  17.  A secretary  and  sheriff  were  appointed.  The 
“ Freeman’s  Charge,”  which  was  a substitute  for  an  oath,  gave  no  pledge  of 
allegiance  to  king  or  Parliament,  nor  any  other  authority  on  the  face  of  the 
earth,  excepting  that  of  the  civil  government  here  established.  “ It  was  a 
state  independent  of  all  others.  It  was  resolved  that  there  should  be  an 
annual  General  Court  or  meeting  of  the  whole  body,  in  the  month  of  Octo- 


256 


OUR  COUNTRY, 


Book  II. 


ber,  and  that  “ the  word  of  God  [the  Bible]  should  be  the  only  rule  to  be 
attended  unto  in  ordering  the  affairs  of  government.”  Then  orders  were 
issued  for  building  a meeting-house ; for  the  distribution  of  house-lots  and 
pasturage;  for  regulating  the  prices  of,  labor  and  commodities,  and  for 
taking  measures  to  resist  the  attacks  of  savages.  They  resolved,  also,  to 
choose  their  own  company,  and  it  was  ordained  that  “ none  should  come  to 
dwell  as  planters  without  their  consent  and  allowance,  whether  they  came  in 
by  purchase  or  otherwise.”  In  1640  they  named  the  settlement  Neiv  Haven. 

In  the  meantime,  the  planters  in  the  Connecticut  Valley  had  been  per- 
fecting a system  of  government,  and  preparing  to  possess  the  land  westward 
as  far  as  the  Hudson  River.  People  from  Quinnipiack  and  the  valley 
planted  themselves  at  Fairfield,  Norwalk,  Guilford,  and  Stratford  and  Mil- 
ford on  the  Housatonic.  Captain  Patrick,  the  commander  of  a part  of  the 
forces  sent  from  Massachusetts  against  the  Pequods,  and  who  had  married  a 
Dutch  wife,  settled  as  far  westward  as  Greenwich,  with  a son-in-law  of  the 
elder  Governor  Winthrop.  At  that  time  there  were  no  Dutch  settlers  east 
of  the  Harlem  River  excepting  Bronck  and  his  lessees  or  tenants.  The 
Dutch,  however,  continued  in  possession  of  their  lands  at  Fort  Good  Hope, 
and  a small  garrison  was  kept  up  there  under  Commissary  Guysbert  op 
Dyck.  But  the  English,  when  they  became  strong  in  numbers,  paid  little 
respect  to  the  rights  of  the  Netherlanders.  They  ploughed  up  their  lands, 
excusing  themselves  for  the  intrusion  with  the  plea  that  the  soil  was  lying 
idle  and  ought  to  be  cultivated  by  somebody.  When  the  Commissary 
attempted  to  resist  these  encroachments,  his  soldiers  were  cudgelled  by  the 
planters,  who  said  they  (the  English)  were  Israelites,  while  the  Dutch  in 
New  Netherland  and  the  English  in  Virginia  were  Egyptians. 

The  troubles  with,  their  neighbors,  pale  and  dusky,  and  the  necessity 
which  called  for  fundamental  laws,  induced  the  planters  of  the  valley  to 
meet  in  convention  at  Hartford  at  the  middle  of  January,  1639,  to  form  a 
constitution  of  government.  Like  that  of  the  New  Haven  colony,  it  was 
framed  without  the  slightest  reference  to  any  other  government.  It  pro- 
vided that  all  persons  in  the  commonwealth  should  be  freemen,  and  should 
take  an  oath  of  allegiance  to  the  general  government ; that  the  governor,  to 
be  elected  at  each  spring  meeting  of  the  freemen,  should  be  a member  of 
some  church  ; that  there  should  be  as  many  magistrates  (not  less  than  six) 
and  other  officers  as  should  be  found  necessary ; that  there  should  be  a 
house  of  deputies,  composed  of  four  from  each  of  the  then  existing  towns, 
and  as  many  as  the  General  Court  or  legislature  should  determine  from 
towns  that  might  be  created ; and  that  the  governor,  four  magistrates,  and  a 
majority  of  the  deputies,  should  be  competent  to  make  all  laws  and  deal 


Chap.  VII. 


THE  CONNECTICUT  COLONY. 


257 


generally  for  the  good  of  the  commonwealth.  In  the  absence  of  special 
laws,  “ the  rule  of  the  word  of  God  ” was  to  be  followed. 

“This  instrument  which  has  been  spoken  of  as  the  “first  example  in 
history  of  a written  constitution — a distinct  organic  law,  constituting  a gov- 
ernment and  defining  its  powers,”  and  which  recognized  no  authority  out- 
side of  its  own  inherent  potency,  continued  in  force  as  the  fundamental  law 
of  Connecticut  one  hundred  and  eighty  years.  It  secured  for  that  common- 
wealth a degree  of  social  order  and  general  prosperity  rarely  equalled  in  the 
life  of  nations.  The  political  organization  under  it  was  called  the  Connec- 
ticut Colony,  and  the  domain  acquired  the  title  of  “ the  land  of  steady 
habits.”  Notwithstanding  the  two  colonies  were  not  united  until  twenty-six 
years  afterward,  now,  in  the  year  .1639,  was  laid  the  foundations  of  the  com- 
monwealth of  Connecticut. 

■ While  the  framework  of  the  colony  of  Connecticut  was  in  process  of 
construction,  that  of  its  little  neighbor  on  the  east,  Rhode  Island,  was  like- 
wise in  a formative  state.  Persecution  by  brethren  had  driven  into  the 
forests  on  the  borders  of  Narraganset  Bay,  good  men  who  became  the 
founders  of  a state.  That  bay  had  been  discovered  and  thoroughly  explored 
by  Block,  the  Dutch  navigator,  as  early  as  1614,  when  he  gave  the  name  of 
Roode  Eylandt  or  Red  Island  to  the  insular  domain  on  its  eastern  side,  now 
known  as  Rhode  Island.  Eight  or  ten  years  afterward  the  Dutch  on  Man- 
hattan carried  on  a profitable  fur  trade  with  the  natives  there,  and  a few 
years  later  they  had  the  monopoly  of  that  trade  as  far  east  as  Buzzard’s  Bay. 
The  Pilgrims  at  Plymouth  were  annoyed  by  this  commercial  intrusion,  as  we 
have  seen,  and  especially  when  the  New  Netherlanders  claimed  territorial 
jurisdiction  as  far  east  as  Narraganset  Bay,  and  westward  from  a line  of 
longitude  from  that  bay  to  Canada.  That  claim  was  made  at  about  the 
time  when  Roger  Williams,  the  founder  of  the  commonwealth  of  Rhode 
Island,  sought  refuge  from  persecution  in  the  forests  on  the  borders  of  the 
Narraganset.  The  claim  was  not  relinquished  until  many  years  afterwards, 
but  was  never  pressed  with  injurious  vehemence. 

Mr.  Williams  was  a Welch  Puritan  educated  in  England  by  Sir  Edward 
Coke,  who  found  him  in  London,  a mere  youth,  reporting  sermons  and  Star- 
chamber  speeches  in  shorthand.  At  the  age  of  thirty-two  years  he  fled 
from  persecution  to  New  England,  where  he  arrived  in  1631  with  his  beauti- 
ful bride  Mary,  a charming  young  English  woman.  He  was  soon  appointed 
assistant  minister  in  the  church  at  Salem,  w'here  his  broad  and  enlightened 
views  respecting  the  freedom  of  conscience  and  the  injurious  character  of  a 
wedded  church  and  state  offended  the  dignitaries  in  both,  at  Boston,  and  he 
withdrew  to  Plymouth.  There  he  was  an  assistant  minister,  acceptable  to 


258 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  II. 


the  people,  for  about  two  years,  when  he  returned  to  Salem  and  became 
pastor  of  the  congregation  to  whom  he  had  ministered  as  assistant. 

Bolder  than  ever,  his  convictions  having  become  more  firmly  rooted  by 
opposition  and  controversy,  Mr.  Williams  now  put  forth  his  views  in  some- 
times intemperate  language,  for  in  support  of  toleration  he  became  intoler- 
ant. He  boldly  questioned  the  authority  of  magistrates  in  respect  to  the 
right  of  the  king  to  appropriate  and  grant  the  lands  of  the  Indians  without 
purchase,  and  the  right  of  the  civil  power  to  impose  faith  and  worship. 
This  denial  of  the  right  of  magistrates  to  intermeddle,  even  to  restrain  a 
church  from  heresy  or  apostacy,  was  regarded  as  so  monstrous  and  danger- 
ous an  error  and  innovation  that  the  banishment  of  Williams  from  the 
colony  was  decreed  unless  he  should  recant,  or  take  back  what  he  had  said. 
He  would  not  recant.  He  maintained  with  vehemence  his  opinion  that  there 
was  an  absolute  and  eternal  distinction  between  the  spheres  of  the  civil 
government  and  the  Christian  church.  He  also  appealed  in  writing  to  the 
charter  against  the  decision  of  magistrates ; and  he  wrote  a long  letter  to 
his  own  congregation  in  favor  of  the  rigid  separation  of  church  and  state. 
These  writings  were  among  his  enumerated  offences,  and  were  called  “ let- 
ters of  defamation  ” in  the  preface  of  his  sentence  of  banishment  which  was 
now  put  in  force,  and  which  ran  thus : 

“ It  is  therefore  ordered  that  the  said  Mr.  Williams  shall  depart  out  of 
this  jurisdiction  within  six  weeks  now  next  ensuing,  which,  if  he  neglect  to 
perform,  it  shall  be  lawful  for  the  governor  and  two  of  the  magistrates  to 
send  him  to  some  place  out  of  this  jurisdiction,  not  to  return  any  more  with- 
out license  from  the  court.” 

This  sentence  was  pronounced  late  in  1635.  The  friends  of  Williams 
were  indignant.  The  enlightened  Edward  Winslow,  who  was  then  governor 
of  Plymouth,  sympathized  with  him  ; and  twenty  leading  men  in  the  two 
colonies  determined  to  go  with  him  to  the  wilderness  and  share  his  priva- 
tions of  exile.  Salem  was  in  an  uproar,  and  the  magistrates  began  to  sus- 
pect that  they  had  made  a mistake  in  passing  the  sentence.  A rumor 
spread  that  he  intended  to  found  a colony  among  the  Narragansets,  with 
whom  he  had  become  familiar  while  he  was  at  Plymouth  and  gained  the 
friendship  of  their  sachems  and  learned  their  language. 

A colony  founded  upon  the  liberal  principles  advocated  by  Williams  was 
not  a pleasant  subject  for  the  contemplation  of  Massachusetts  magistrates 
and  clergymen  at  that  period,  and  the  time  for  his  departure  was  extended 
until  spring.  Williams  regarded  this  as  a concession.  No  doubt  he  had 
formed  a plan  for  founding  a new  colony,  and  was  now  glad  of  an  excuse  to 
leave  Massachusetts ; so  he  taught  his  doctrines  with  more  fervor,  and  boldly 


Chap.  VII. 


WILLIAMS  LEAVING  MASSACHUSETTS. 


259 


proclaimed  himself  to  be  an  Anabaptist — one  who  denies  the  validity  of  infant 
baptism — a Baptist  of  our  day.  This  was  too  much  for  his  people  and  the 
authorities  in  church  and  state,  and  it  was  resolved  by  Governor  Haynes  to 
send  the  “ troubler  ” back  to  England.  He  had  refused  to  obey  a summons 
to  appear  before  the  magistrates  at  Boston,  and  they  sent  a pinnace  to 
Salem,  with  a warrant  to  Captain  Underhill  to  arrest  him,  take  him  on  board 
the  little  vessel,  and  convey  him  to  a ship  then  ready  to  sail  for  England. 

Williams  had  been  informed  of  this  order.  Ex-Governor  Winthrop  had 
kindly  but  secretly  advised  him 
to  “ steer  his  canoe  to  the  Nar- 
raganset  Bay  and  Indians; ’’and 
when  Underhill  and  his  men 
went  to  his  house  to  arrest  him, 
they  found  only  his  sorrowing 
wife  and  two  babes.  Williams 
had  been  gone  three  days.  On 
a cold  winter’s  night,  the,  moon 
on  the  wane,  he  had  kissed  his 
wife  and  children  and  departed 
in  the  gloom  to  seek  a refuge 
with  the  dusky  pagans,  who  were 
more  tolerant  than  his  pale-faced 
Christian  brethren.  He  went 
forth  alone  with  a long  staff  and 
a scrip  thrown  over  his  shoulders. 

The  snow  was  deep.  Wild  beasts 
were  in  his  path.  Behind  him 
were  the  treasures  of  wife  and 
children  ; before  him,  as  radiant 
and  enticing  as  the  “ star  in  the 
east,”  glowed  the  brilliant  lumi- 
nary of  Christian  ethics,  which 
was  his  pole-star  and  guide.  He 
made  his  way  to  the  house  of  Massasoit,  the  venerable  sachem  of  the  Wam- 
panoags,  where  he  was  warmly  welcomed.  The  sachem  gave  him  a tract  of 
land  on  the  Seekonk  River,  eastward  of  the  site  of  Providence,  at  which 
place  he  and  some  friends  who  joined  him  seated  themselves  in  the  spring 
of  1636.  Some  distance  above  them,  on  the  Seekonk  or  Pawtucket  River, 
was  a solitary  settler  named  William  Blackstone.  He  was  a non-conformist 
minister,  who  disliked  the  “ lords  brethren  ” of  Massachusetts  as  much  as 


WILLIAMS  GOING  INTO  EXILE. 


26o 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  II. 


the  “ lords  bishops”  of  England.  He  had  withdrawn  to  the  wilderness,  and 
there  lived  the  life  of  a hermit  at  a place  which  he  named  Rehoboth — room. 
He  was  the  first  settler  but  not  the  founder  of  Rhode  Island,  for  he  refused 
to  join  Williams  and  his  friends. 

Just  as  the  new  colony  had  begun  to  build  and  plant  near  the  present 
Manton’s  cove,  a friendly  letter  came  from  Governor  Winslow  saying  they 
were  within  the  jurisdiction  of  the  Plymouth  Colony,  and  as  he  did  not  wish 
to  offend  “ the  Bay,”  and  desired  the  undisturbed  repose  of  the  exiles,  he 
advised  Williams  and  his  little  party  to  pass  to  the  other  side  of  the  See- 
konk,  where  he  would  have  a large  countr)’  before  him  beyond  the  jurisdic- 
tion of  both  colonies  on  the  coast. 

The  settlers  heeded  this  kind  and  wise  advice.  The  six  exiles  left  the 
Seekonk  in  a large  canoe,  with  all  the  worldly  goods  which  they  had  brought 
into  the  wilderness,  and  rounding  the  headlands  known  as  Fox  and  India 
Points,  they  went  up  to  the  mouth  of  the  Mooshansic  River  and  landed. 
It  was  a warm  day  late  in  June.  Near  by,  upon  a grassy  slope  shaded  by 
sycamore  trees,  they  saw  a gushing  spring.  It  was  a joyful  sight  to  the 
thirsty  pilgrims.  Around  it  they  gathered,  and  after  partaking  of  its  clear 
waters,  they  fell  on  their  knees  and  offered  fervid  supplications  and  thanks- 
giving to  God  for  his  goodness.  At  that  spring,  now  surrounded  by  a popu- 
lous city  and  yet  shaded  by  sycamores,  these  devout  men  resolved  there  to 
lay  the  foundations  of  a free  state.  In  commemoration  of  “ God's  merciful 
providence  to  him  in  his  distress,”  Williams  named  the  spot  Providenee,  and 
dedicated  it  as  “ a shelter  for  persons  distressed  for  conscience.” 

The  freedom  enjoyed  at  Providence  was  spoken  of  at  Boston,  and  perse- 
cuted men  flocked  to  the  new  settlement  with  their  families.  Williams  had 
purchased  the  land  from  the  aged  Canonicus  and  the  younger  Miantono- 
moh,  who  had  learned  to  love  him.  These  men,  naturally  shy  and  suspicious, 
had  perfect  confidence  in  Williams,  and  willingly  took  him  and  his  friends 
into  their  bosoms.  “ It  was  not  thousands  nor  tens  of  thousands  of  money,” 
Williams  wrote,  “ that  could  have  bought  of  them  an  English  entrance  into 
the  bay.”  It  was  the  personal  influence  of  the  men  who  there  established 
a pure  democracy,  under  the  following  simple  article  of  agreement : 

“ We,  whose  names  are  hereunder  written,  being  desirous  to  inhabit  in 
the  town  of  Providence,  do  promise  to  submit  ourselves,  in  active  or  passive 
obedience,  to  all  such  orders  or  agreements  as  shall  be  made  for  public  good 
by  the  body  in  an  orderly  way,  by  the  major  consent  of  the  inhabitants, 
masters  of  families,  incorporated  together  into  a township,  and  such  others 
as  they  shall  admit  into  the  same,  only  in  civil  things.” 

Every  man  was  required  to  sign  this  compact,  which  left  him  free  in  all 


Chap.  VII. 


THE  PROVIDENCE  COLONY. 


261 


but  “ civil  things.”  The  conscience  was  left  absolutely  free.  The  founder 
reserved  no  political  power  to  himself,  and  the  leader  and  follower  had  equal 
dignity  and  privileges.  Under  the  sunny  skies  of  such  freedom,  the  settlers 
fell  to  work  cheerfully.  The  summer  was  too  far  advanced  to  allow  them  to 
procure  much  food  from  the  soil ; and  when  Governor  Winslow  visited 
Providence  in  the  autumn,  the  planters  were  much  pinched.  This  fact  is 
made  evident  by  the  touching  manner  in  which  the  founder  gratefully 
alludes  to  the  kindness  of  the  governor.  “ He  put  a piece  of  gold  into  the 


WILLIAMS  AND  HIS  FELLOW-EXILES  AT  THE  SPRING. 


hands  of  my  wife  for  our  supply,”  he  wrote ; — that  sweet,  loving  wife  who 
shared  with  her  husband  the  privations  as  well  as  the  comforts  and  honors 
which  were  his  lot. 

Now  came  the  war  with  the  Pequods.  Persecution  and  slander  had  not 


262 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  11. 


embittered  the  feelings  of  Williams  toward  the  authorities  of  Massachusetts. 
Seeing  the  danger,  he  warned  them  of  it  early.  He  sent  to  Governor  Win- 
throp  a rude  map  of  the  country  along  the  coast  from  the  Narraganset  to 
the  Connecticut,  which  he  had  drawn  from  descriptions  by  the  Indians,  with 
a plan  for  a campaign,  and  perilled  his  life  for  the  good  of  his  enemies.  He 
saved  his  persecutors  from  destruction,  yet  the  rulers  in  church  and  state  in 
Massachusetts  had  not  the  Christian  manliness  to  show  gratitude  by  expung- 
ing from  their  records  his  sentence  of  banishment  and  receiving  him  to  their 
bosoms  as  a brother.  They  proclaimed  a solemn  thanksgiving  at  the  close 
of  the  war,  and  received  the  leaders  of  their  troops  in  triumph  with  feasting 
and  rejoicing ; but  they  passed  no  vote  of  thanks  to  one  who  had  achieved 
more  for  the  life  of  that  commonwealth  than  any  soldier  or  statesman. 
Winthrop  tried  to  procure  a vote  of  thanks  and  Williams’s  recall  from  banish- 
ment, but  bigotry  prevailed.  The  following  couplet,  written  by  Governor 
Dudley,  expresses  the  prevailing  sentiment  of  magistrates  and  clergy  then 
in  Boston : 

“ Let  men  of  God,  in  court  and  churches,  watch 
O’er  such  as  do  a toleration  hatch.” 

The  theological  disputes  already  referred  to  as  agitating  the  people  of 
Massachusetts  divided  them  and  sent  many  into  exile.  A brilliant  woman, 
named  Anne  Hutchinson,  of  powerful  intellect  and  beautiful  person,  came 
to  Boston.  She  was  a sister  of  Rev.  John  Wheelwright,  a popular  preacher 
there.  She  agreed,  generally,  in  theological  views,  with  Roger  Williams, 
and  very  soon  boldly  proclaimed  the  doctrine  that  conscience,  the  indwell- 
ing Holy  Spirit  in  every  believer,  and  the  conscientious  judgment  of  the 
mind,  are  of  paramount  authority.  She  denounced  the  prevailing  spiritual 
despotism,  and  startled  and  charmed  the  best  thinkers  with  the  loftiness  of 
her  ideas  concerning  the  spiritual  freedom  of  the  individual.  She  soon  drew 
many  leading  men  after  her.  Among  these  was  the  young  Henry  Vane, 
then  governor  of  the  commonwealth,  and  a few  of  the  clergy,  but  only  her 
brother  among  the  ministers  ventured  to  openly  advocate  her  doctrines. 
He  was  censured  by  the  civil  authorities,  when  he  threatened  to  appeal  to 
the  king.  This  threat  a synod  of  clergy  and  lay  delegates,  called  to  act 
upon  the  subject,  construed  into  a menace  of  rebellion,  and  gave  them  a 
pretext  for  recommending  the  civil  authorities  to  disarm  the  “ Hutchin- 
sonians.” 

The  war  of  words  was  waged  more  fiercely.  The  civil  authorities 
arraigned  Mrs.  Hutchinson,  her  brother,  and  another  leader  in  the  move- 
ment, on  a charge  of  heresy.  The  result  was  a decree  for  the  banishment 
of  these  three  persons,  and  the  disarming  of  sixty  citizens  of  Boston.  They 


Chap.  VII. 


THE  RHODE  ISLAND  COLONY. 


263 


were  forbidden,  upon  the  penalty  of  a fine,  to  buy  or  borrow  any  other  arms 
or  ammunition,  until  permitted  by  the  General  Court  or  legislature.  Un- 
willing to  endure  this  indignity,  a large  portion  of  them,  under  the  leader- 
ship of  John  Clarke  and  William  Coddington,  left  Boston  with  their  families, 
accompanied  by  Mrs.  Hutchinson  and  her  brother,  with  the  intention  of 
settling  on  the  Delaware  Bay.  They  were  so  “ lovingly  entertained  ” by 
Roger  Williams  at  Providence,  and  so  kindly  invited  to  settle  in  the  land  of 
the  Narragansets,  that  they  paused.  Through  the  influence  of  Williams 
they  were  enabled  to  purchase  from  the  Indians  the  beautiful  island  of 
Aquetneck,  now  Rhode  Island  ; and  at  the  close  of  March,  1638,  they  began 
a settlement  at  Portsmouth,  near  its  northern  extremity.  The  colonists  were 
charmed  with  the  salubrity  of  the  climate,  and  thankfully  exchanged  their 
home  on  Shawmut  (the  Boston  peninsula)  for  one  on  Rhode  Island.  They 
all  immediately  adopted  and  all  signed  a written  agreement  similar  to  that 
of  the  Providence  colony,  in  these  words : 

“We,  whose  names  are  underwritten,  do  swear  solemnly,  in  the  presence 
of  Jehovah,  to  incorporate  ourselves  into  a body  politic,  and,  as  He  shall 
help  us,  will  submit  our  persons,  lives,  and  estates,  unto  our  Lord  Jesus 
Christ,  the  King  of  kings  and  Lord  of  Hosts,  and  to  all  those  most  perfect 
and  absolute  laws  of  His,  given  us  in  his  Holy  Word  of  Truth,  to  be  guided 
and  judged  thereby.” 

In  imitation  of  the  Jewish  form  of  government,  under  the  judges,  Mr. 
Coddington  was  chosen  judge  or  chief  ruler  of  the  Rhode  Island  colony. 
Both  settlements  flourished.  1 hey  were  separate  governments,  but  one  in 
aims  and  sentiment.  The  persecuted  came  to  them  and  population  rapidly 
increased.  Liberty  of  conscience  was  there  absolute;  and  upon  the  seal 
which  the  Rhode  Island  colony  adopted  was  the  motto:  Amor  Vincit  Omnia 
— “ Love  is  all-powerful.”  The  jealousy  of  the  Massachusetts  authorities 
was  frequently  conspicuous,  and  stood  in  the  way  of  a friendly  intercourse 
and  a profitable  trade  between  the  two  colonies.  Because  a refugee  from 
Boston,  writing  from  Providence,  spoke  harshly  of  Massachusetts  magis- 
trates, the  latter  passed  an  ordinance  forbidding  citizens  of  Providence,  of 
like  views,  coming  into  that  colony. 

Unwilling  to  yield  allegiance  to  either  of  the  other  colonies,  the  Rhode 
Island  and  Providence  settlements  sought  an  independent  charter  which 
should  unite  them  in  one  commonwealth.  At  about  that  time,  a confed- 
eracy of  the  New  England  colonies,  for  mutual  defence,  was  formed,  but  the 
stern  bigotry  which  banished  Mr.  Williams  and  Mrs.  Hutchinson,  excluded 
these  settlements  on  the  Narraganset  from  the  Union.  That  isolation,  in 
case  of  trouble  with  the  savages,  would  be  both  perilous  and  inconvenient. 


264 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  II. 


and  Williams  was  sent  to  England  to  obtain  a royal  charter.  He  sailed 
from  New  Amsterdam  in  the  summer  of  1643,  and  arrived  in  Great  Britain 
at  the  time  when  the  civil  war  was  raging  violently.  Circumstances  favoied 
his  mission.  The  king  was  powerless ; the  Parliament  was  supreme.  That 
body  had  entrusted  the  management  of  colonial  affairs  to  a commission  of 
which  the  Earl  of  Warwick,  the  original  grantee  of  Connecticut,  was  the 
head  as  “ Governor-General  and  Lord  High  Admiral  of  the  colonies  in 
America.”  He  was  assisted  by  a council  composed  of  five  peers  and  ten 
commons.  Henry  Vane,  who  had  returned  to  England  and  had  been  created 
a baronet,  was  one  of  that  Council.  He  received  Mr.  Williams  cordially, 


ROGER  WILLIAMS.  OLIVER  CROMWELL.  JAMES  M. 


and  introduced  him  to  his  associates.  That  body  listened  to  Mr.  Williams’s 
statements  with  great  attention,  and  granted  his  prayer.  On  the  14th  of 
March,  1644,  they  issued  a charter  in  the  name  of  the  king,  which  connected 
the  towns  of  Providence,  Portsmouth,  and  Newport  under  the  title  of  “the 
Incorporation  of  Providence  Plantations  in  the  Narragansett  Bay  in  New 
England.” 

Mr.  Williams  left  England  for  his  home  in  the  summer  of  1644,  bearing 
the  charter.  He  also  bore  a letter  signed  by  several  members  of  Parliament. 


Chap.  VII. 


ROGER  WILLIAMS  HONORED. 


265 


addressed  to  the  authorities  of  Massachusetts,  in  favor  of  the  exile,  and  with 
this  he  landed  in  Boston.  The  letter  did  not  weaken  the  asperities  of  the 
magistrates  toward  him,  excepting  sufficient  to  allow  him  to  pass  to  Provi- 
dence unmolested.  That  heretical  colony,  now  that  it  had  received  a charter 
and  been  applauded  by  high  authority  in  England,  was  more  than  ever  an 
object  of  distrust  and  suspicion  on  the  part  of  the  Massachusetts  authorities. 
But  Mr.  Williams  bore  himself  meekly  under  their  frowns.  As  he  ap- 
proached Providence  he  was  cheered  by  a gratifying  spectacle.  The  people 
had  heard  of  his  coming,  and  all  turned  out  to  meet  him  and  welcome  him 
home.  The  Seekonk  was  covered  with  well-filled  canoes  gaily  decked  with 
flowers  and  evergreens,  and  the  shore  was  alive  with  men,  women  and  chil- 
dren in  holiday  attire,  who  greeted  him  with  loud  huzzas,  the  waving  of 
handkerchiefs,  and  the  singing  of  psalms.  The  charter  which  he  bore  to  the 
people  on  the  banks  of  the  Narraganset  was  the  corner-stone  of  a state. 
Then  was  founded  the  commonwealth  of  Rhode  Island. 


CHAPTER  VIII. 


SOCIAL  CONDITION  OF  HOLLAND  IN  THE  SEVENTEENTH  CENTURY — INDUCEMENTS  TO  SETTLE  IN 
NEW  NETHERLAND — THE  PATROONS,  THEIR  PRIVILEGES  AND  DEPENDANTS — A SETTLEMENT  IN 
DELAWARE  AND  ITS  FATE — THE  SWEDES  ON  THE  DELAWARE — THE  DUTCH  AND  SWEDES  AT 
VARIANCE — THE  SWEDES  MALNTAIN  THEIR  POSITION  — NEW  JERSEY  GRANTED  TO  ROYAL 
FAVORITES — INDUCEMENTS  TO  SETTLE  THERE — GOVERNOR  CARTERET  AND  SETTLERS  AT 
ELIZABETHTOWN — TROUBLE  WITH  THE  SETTLERS — A REPUBLICAN  PROPHET. 

WHEN  industry  was  made  honorable  in  Holland,  the  feudal  sys- 
tem began  to  decay.  It  was  a system  embracing  large  land- 
owners,  whose  tenants  were  military  men  who  controlled  all 
labor  and  bore  allegiance  to  the  lordly  proprietor.  In  the  new  era  which 
had  gradually  dawned  in  Holland,  the  owner  of  the  soil  was  no  longer  the 
head  of  a band  of  armed  depredators  who  were  his  dependants,  but  the 
careful  proprietor  of  broad  acres,  and  devoted  to  industry  and  thrift.  The 
nobles  who  composed  the  landlord  class  gradually  came  down  from  the  stilts 
of  exclusiveness,  and  in  habits  and  even  costume  imitated  the  working 
people.  The  latter  became  elevated  in  the  social  scale.  Their  rights  were 
respected,  and  their  value  in  the  state  was  duly  estimated.  Ceaseless  toil  in 
Holland  was  necessary  to  preserve  the  hollow  land  from  the  invasion  of  the 
sea,  and  the  common  needs  assimilated  all  classes  in  a country  where  all 
must  work  or  drown. 

It  was  this  state  of  society  in  Holland  which  stimulated  agricultural 
interests  in  New  Netherland,  and  changed  trading  into  farming  communities. 
This  impulse  was  much  accelerated  by  a charter  of  “ Privileges  and  Exemp- 
tions ” given  by  the  Dutch  West  India  Company  in  1629,  for  the  purpose  of 
encouraging  agricultural  settlements  on  their  American  domain.  They 
reserved  the  lands  on  and  around  the  island  of  Manhattan,  which  they 
called  the  commercial  emporium  of  the  province,  and  required  that  all  pro- 
ducts for  exportation  should  first  be  brought  there.  To  persons  who  were 
disposed  to  settle  in  any  other  part  of  the  province,  the  Company  offered  as 
much  land  as  each  emigrant  might  be  able  to  improve,  with  “ free  liberty  of 
hunting  and  fowling,”  under  the  direction  of  the  provincial  governor.  They 
also  offered  to  every  person  who  should  “ discover  any  shores,  bays,  or  other 


Chap.  VIll.  PATROONS  AND  THEIR  PRIVILEGES.  267 

fit  places  for  erecting  fisheries,  or  the  making  of  salt-ponds,”  an  absolute 
property  in  such  discovery. 

The  rural  tenantry  of  Holland  were  not  rich  enough  to  avail  themselves 
of  this  privilege,  so  the  Company  offered  inducements  for  wealthy  citizens 
to  promote  emigration,  by  transplanting  into  America  the  modified  feudal 
system  of  the  Netherlands.  They  offered  to  grant  lands  and  manorial  priv- 
ileges and  exemptions  to  any  member  of  the  Company  who  should,  within 
four  years,  plant  a colony  of  fifty  adults  in  any  part  of  New  Netherland  out- 
side of  Manhattan  Island ; such  proprietor  being  constituted  feudal  chief 
of  the  domain  which  he  might  thus  colonize.  The  lands  of  each  colony 
were  limited  to  sixteen  miles  along  one  shore  of  a navigable  stream,  or  to 
eight  miles  if  they  occupied  both  shores,  but  they  might  extend  into  the 
interior  indefinitely.  It  was  also  provided  that  if  any  proportionably  greater 
number  of  emigrants  should  be  settled  by  a proprietor,  the  area  of  his 
domain  should  be  extended  in  the  same  ratio.  He  was  to  be  absolutely 
lord  of  the  manor,  political  and  otherwise.  He  might  hold  inferior  courts 
for  the  adjudication  of  petty  civil  cases;  and  if  cities  should  grow  up  on  his 
domain  he  was  to  have  power  to  appoint  the  magistrates  and  other  officers 
of  such  municipalities,  and  have  a deputy  to  confer  with  the  governor. 

The  settlers  under  the  “ patroons,”  as  these  manorial  proprietors  were 
called,  were  to  be  exempted  from  all  taxation  and  tribute  for  the  support  of 
the  provincial  government  for  ten  years ; and  for  the  same  period  every 
man,  woman  and  child  was  bound  not  to  leave  the  service  of  the  patroon 
without  his  written  consent.  The  colonists  were  forbidden  to  manufacture 
cloth  of  any  kind,  on  pain  of  banishment ; and  the  Company  agreed  to  fur- 
nish them  with  as  many  African  slaves  “ as  they  conveniently  could  also 
to  protect  them  against  foes.  Each  colony  was  bound  to  support  a minister 
of  the  Gospel  and  a schoolmaster,  and  so  provide  a comforter  for  the  sick 
and  a teacher  of  the  illiterate.  It  was  also  provided  that  every  colonist, 
whether  patroon  or  an  independent  settler,  should  first  make  a satisfactory 
arrangement  with  the  Indians  for  the  lands  they  should  occupy. 

Such  is  a brief  outline  of  the  charter  of  “ Privileges  and  Exemptions  ” 
under  which  several  large  manorial  estates  were  acquired  in  New  Netherland, 
one  of  which  (the  Van  Rensselaer  Manor  on  the  Hudson)  existed,  with 
some  of  its  privileges,  until  late  in  the  present  century.  It  recognized  the 
right  of  the  Indians  to  the  soil;  invited  independent  farmers  to  whom  a 
homestead  should  be  secured ; promised  protection  to  all  in  case  of  war,  and 
encouraged  religion  and  learning.  Yet  this  system  of  colonization  was  not 
so  favorable  to  the  development  and  growth  of  popular  liberty  as  was  that 
in  New  England. 


268 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  II. 


While  this  charter  was  under  consideration  in  the  meetings  of  the  Com- 
pany at  Amsterdam,  two  of  the  directors  (Samuel  Godyn  and  Samuel  Bloem- 
maert)  purchased  of  the  Indians  a tract  of  land  on  Delaware  Bay,  extending 
from  Cape  Henlopen  (the  southern  boundary  of  New  Netherland)  northward, 
full  thirty  miles,  and  two  miles  in  the  interior.  This  purchase  was  ratified 
by  the  Company  when  the  charter  was  issued.  Very  soon  afterward  Killian 
Van  Rensselaer  purchased  a large  tract  of  the  natives  on  the  upper  navi- 
gable waters  of  the  Hudson  River;  and  Michael  Pauw,  another  director, 
secured  by  the  same  means  a large  tract  in  New  Jersey  at  the  mouth  of  the 
river,  opposite  Manhattan,  and  all  of  Staten  Island.  This  adroit  manage- 
ment of  wide-awake  directors,  in  securing  the  best  lands  in  the  province,  as 
to  situation — who  “helped  themselves  by  the  cunning  trick  of  merchants” — 
provoked  jealousy  and  ill-will  among  their  fellow-directors,  which  was  finally 
allayed  by  admitting  others  into  partnership  with  them. 

Immediate  steps  were  taken  for  colonizing  these  manors.  Under  the 
direction  of  Captain  de  Vries,  an  eminent  navigator  and  friend  of  Godyn, 
who  had  made  him  a partner  in  the  purchase,  two  ships  sailed  with  colonists, 
cattle,  seeds  and  agricultural  implements,  for  Delaware  Bay.  They  left 
the  Texel  under  the  command  of  Peter  Heyes  on  the  I2th  of  December, 
1630,  and  took  the  long  southern  route  by  way  of  the  Canaries  and  the  West 
Indies.  One  of  the  vessels  w'as  captured ; the  other,  carrying  eighteen  can- 
non, did  not  reach  the  Delaware  until  April  following.  Near  the  site  of  the 
village  of  Lewiston,  thirty  emigrants,  with  their  cattle  and  implements, 
seated  themselves.  There  Heyes  set  up  a wooden  column,  and  on  it  placed 
a piece  of  tin  emblazoned  with  the  arms  of  Holland  in  token  of  taking  pos- 
session of  the  country  in  the  name  of  the  States-General.  The  place  was 
named  Swaanendael.  They  built  a house  and  stockaded  it ; and  then  Cap- 
tain Heyes  went  over  to  the  New  Jersey  shore  and  purchased  from  the 
Indians,  in  the  name  of  Godyn,  a tract  of  land  along  the  coast  from  Cape 
May,  twelve  miles.  In  the  autumn,  Heyes  returned  to  Holland,  leaving  the 
colony  in  charge  of  Gillis  Hossett. 

In  the  spring  of  1632,  De  Vries  went  with  two  vessels  to  the  Delaware. 
There  a sad  sight  greeted  him.  The  house  which  the  settlers  had  built  was 
in  ruins ; the  palisades  had  been  burned  ; and  the  bones  of  the  settlers 
strewed  the  ground.  They  had  all  been  murdered  by  the  Indians.  One  of 
the  savages  told  De  Vries  all  about  it.  A chief  thoughtlessly  took  down  the 
piece  of  tin  which  bore  the  arms  of  Holland,  to  make  a tobacco-pipe  of  it. 
Hossett  made  such  ado  about  it,  that  the  Indians,  to  allay  the  feeling,  slew 
the  offending  chief,  and  sent  his  scalp  to  the  Dutch  commander.  When  the 
bearer  presented  it,  Hossett  told  him  the  Indians  had  done  wrong;  that  had 


Chap.  VIII. 


A SWEDISH  COLONY  PROJECTED. 


269 


the  offender  been  brought  to  him  he  would  only  have  cautioned  him  not  to 
repeat  the  offence.  The  friends  of  the  victim  burned  with  vengeful  desires, 
and  determined  to  destroy  the  white  people  as  a retribution.  A party  of 
warriors  visited  the  settlement  under  the  guise  of  friendship,  and  massacred 
the  whole  of  them  in  their  houses  and  in  the  fields.  This  crime  was  for- 
given, and  the  Indians  and  Hollanders  remained  friends. 

A competition  with  the  English  and  Dutch  for  American  possessions 
now  appeared  in  the  North.  The  enlightened  Gustavus  Adolphus,  King  of 
Sweden,  had  looked  with  longing  eyes  westward  as  he  heard  from  time  to 
time  of  the  rich  countries  beyond  the  British  isles.  At  length  he  was  excited 
to  action  by  William  Usselincx,  the  projector  of  the  Dutch  West  India  Com- 
pany, who,  dissatisfied  with  his  associates  in  that  corporation,  visited  Sweden, 
and  laid  before  its  monarch  well-arranged  plans  for  colonization  on  the  Dela- 
ware. The  king  was  delighted.  He  entered  warmly  into  the  projects  of 
Usselincx,  and  v/as  preparing  for  the  execution  of  a scheme  for  planting  a 
colony  in  America  that  should  be  an  open  asylum  for  all  Christians,  when  the 
danger  which  threatened  Protestantism  in  Germany  called  him  to  the  field 
to  contend  for  the  principles  of  the  Reformation.  While  leading  victorious 
armies  against  the  Imperial  hosts  marshalled  under  the  banner  of  the  Pope 
on  the  fields  of  Germany,  he  did  not  forget  the  scheme  for  American  coloni- 
zation. At  Nuremburg  he  drew  up  a paper  for  his  great  chancellor,  the 
Count  Oxenstierna,  in  which  he  recommended  the  enterprise  as  “ the  jewel 
of  his  kingdom.”  A few  days  afterwards  he  was  face  to  face  with  his  enemy 
at  Lutzen,  in  battle  array.  On  their  knees  he  and  the  brave  Swedes  sang 
Luther’s  glorious  hymn,  Eine  feste  Burg  ist  unscr  Gott — “ A tower  of  strength 
is  our  God.”  Then  they  sang  a hymn  composed  by  the  king  himself,  and 
springing  to  their  feet,  they  made  a furious  charge  upon  the  Imperialists, 
Gustavus  leading  the  right  wing.  He  fell  covered  with  mortal  wounds. 

But  the  words  of  Gustavus  did  not  die.  Oxensteirna,  at  the  head  of  a 
regency,  administered  the  government  for  the  heir  to  the  throne,  Christina, 
who  was  then  only  six  years  of  age.  “ A colony  in  America  would,  indeed,  be 
a precious  jewel  in  the  crown  of  Sweden,”  said  the  wise  Chancellor.  He 
had  favored  the  project  from  the  beginning;  and  in  1634,  he  issued  a charter 
for  a Swedish  West  India  Company. 

Governor  Minuit,  who  had  been  recalled  from  New  Netherland  because 
he  had  favored  the  grasping  patroons  too  much,  it  was  thought,  hastened  to 
Stockholm  and  offered  the  fruits  of  his  experience  in  America  and  his  per- 
sonal services  to  the  new  company.  They  were  gladly  accepted  ; and  at 
near  the  close  of  1637,  he  sailed  from  Gottenburg  with  fifty  emigrants  in 
two  vessels,  bearing  a commission  to  plant  a colony  on  the  west  side  of  Dela- 


270 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  H. 


ware  Bay,  within  the  manor  of  Godyn  and  Blommacrt,  where  he  knew  no 
settlement  then  existed.  He  landed  at  the  site  of  Newcastle  in  April  1638, 
and  purchased  from  the  Indians  the  whole  territory  from  Cape  Henlopen  to 
the  falls  of  the  Delaware  River  at  Trenton  without  the  slightest  regard  to 


GUSTAVUS  ADOLPHUS  AT  THE  HEAD  OF  HIS  TROOPS. 


the  claims  of  the  Dutch.  Then  he  sailed  into  the  mouth  of  the  river,  and 
anchored  in  a creek  at  the  site  of  Wilmington.  They  built  a fort  and  then 
a church,  and  named  the  place  Christina,  in  honor  of  their  young  queen. 
The  territory  they  had  purchased  they  called  New  Sweden. 

When  the  Dutch  at  Fort  Nassau,  fifteen  miles  further  up  the  river,  heard 
of  this  intrusion,  they  went  down  to  inquire  what  it  meant.  Minuit  gave 
them  evasive  answers  at  first,  but  finally  told  them  that  he  intended  to  plant 
a settlement  in  the  country,  and  build  a fort  there.  “ The  Queen  of  Sweden,” 
he  said,  “ has  as  good  a right  to  build  a fort  here  as  the  Dutch  West  India 


Chap.  VIII. 


SWEDES  ON  THE  DELAWARE. 


271 


Company.”  A messenger  to  tell  the  news  was  at  once  sent  to  Man- 
hattan. Kieft,  the  newly-arrived  governor,  sent  an  officer  to  Minuit  at 
Christina  to  protest  against  the  movement.  The  warning  was  unheeded. 
Then  Kieft  issued  a proclamation  saying  that  he  was  persuaded  that  the 
Queen  of  Sweden  had  not  authorized  the  building  of  forts  within  the 
domain  of  New  Netherland,  and  that  while  he  would  not  be  responsible  “ for 
any  mishap,  bloodshed,  trouble  and  disaster”  which  Minuit  and  his  people 
might  suffer  thereafter,  he  was  resolved  to  defend  the  rights  of  the  West 
India  Company  as  he  should  deem  proper. 

Minuit  paid  no  attention  to  this  proclamation,  but  built  Fort  Christina 
on  the  site  of  Wilmington,  and  erected  posts  with  the  royal  initials  and  the 
crown  of  Sweden  carved  on  them.  Well  acquainted  with  the  Indian  traffic, 
from  long  experience  at  Manhattan,  he  soon  drew  to  Christina  a profitable 
fur-trade ; and  at  midsummer  he  sent  the  vessels  back  to  Sweden  with 
cargoes  of  peltry  and  other  products  of  the  land.  The  fort  was  well  gar- 
risoned and  provisioned,  and  the  settlers  there  planted  and  reaped.  So  was 
established  the  first  permanent  settlement  on  that  soil,  and  there  and  then 
was  planted  the  fruitful  seed  of  the  commonwealth  of  Dclaiuare. 

Eastward  of  the  Delaware  Bay  and  River  (so  called  in  honor  of  Lord  De 
la  Warr,  Governor  of  Virginia,)  lies  New  Jersey.  Its  domain  was  included 
in  the  New  Netherland  charter.  So  early  as  1622,  transient  trading  settle- 
ments were  made  on  its  soil  at  Bergen  and  on  the  banks  of  the  Delaware. 
The  following  year,  as  we  have  observed.  Director  May,  moved  by  the 
attempt  of  a French  sea-captain  to  set  up  the  arms  of  France  on  the  Dela- 
ware, built  a redoubt  called  Fort  Nassau  at  the  mouth  of  Timmer  Kill  or 
Timber  Creek,  a few  miles  below  Camden,  and  settled  some  young  Walloons 
near  it.  The  most  southern  headland  of  New  Jersey  and  now  popular  sum- 
mer resort.  Cape  May,  received  its  name  from  the  first  director-general  of 
New  Netherland,  who  gave  it,  also,  to  several  other  places. 

The  Walloons — young  couples  who  had  been  married  on  shipboard — 
settled  on  the  site  of  Gloucester.  This  was  the  first  settlement  on  the  soil 
of  New  Jersey  that  lived  long;  but  it,  too,  withered  away  in  time.  It  was 
seven  years  later  when  Michael  Pauw  made  his  purchase  of  the  Indians 
extending  from  Hoboken  to  the  Raritan  River,  and  latinizing  his  name, 
called  it  Pavonia.  In  this  purchase  was  included  the  settlement  of  some 
Dutch  at  Bergen.  Other  settlements  were  attempted,  but  none  became  per- 
manent until  about  forty  years  afterward.  Gape  May,  which  Captain  Heyes 
bought  of  the  Indians— a territory  sixteen  miles  square — remained  an  un- 
cultivated wilderness  all  that  time  yielding  the  products  of  its  salt  meadows 
to  the  browsing  deer. 


2/2 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  II. 


We  must  now  run  ahead  of  our  story,  as  we  have,  a little,  at  other  times, 
in  coming  to  the  period  when  the  foundations  of  a colony  were  actually  laid, 
and  glance  at  an  important  event  in  the  political  history  of  New  Netherland. 
Charles  the  Second,  King  of  England,  granted  a greater  portion  of  the 
claimed  territory  of  New  Netherland  to  his  brother,  the  Duke  of  York,  then 
Lord  High  Admiral  of  the  realm..  The  duke  sent  a fleet  and  army  to  take 
possession  of  his  domain.  This  armament,  stronger  than  any  in  New  Nether- 


THE  SWEDES  ON  THE  DELAWARE. 


land,  found  the  task  an  easy  one,  and  early  in  the  autumn  of  1664,  the 
province  passed  into  the  hands  of  the  English.  Soon  after  that  armament 
sailed,  and  while  it  was  yet  on  the  bosom  of  the  Atlantic,  the  duke  conveyed 
to  two  of  his  favorites  all  the  territory  between  the  Hudson  and  Delaware 
rivers  from  Cape  May  north  to  the  latitude  of  forty  degrees  and  forty  min- 
utes. These  favorites  were  Lord  Berkeley,  brother  of  the  governor  of  Vir- 
ginia and  the  duke’s  own  governor  in  his  youth,  and  Sir  George  Carteret, 
then  the  treasurer  of  the  Admiralty,  who  had  been  governor  of  the  island 
of  Jersey,  which  he  had  gallantly  defended  against  the  forces  of  Cromwell. 
In  the  charter  this  province  was  named  “ Nova  Cmsarea  or  New  Jersey,”  in 
commemoration  of  Carteret’s  loyalty  and  gallant  deeds  while  he  was  governor 
of  the  island  of  Jersey.  Colonel  Richard  Nicolls,  the  commander  of  the 
expedition  to  seize  New  Netherland,  and  deputy-governor  of  the  province, 
changed  the  name  to  Nnv  York ; and,  ignorant  of  the  charter  given  to 
Berkeley  and  Carteret,  he  called  the  territory  west  of  the  Hudson  Albania, 
so  honoring  his  employer,  who  bore  the  title  of  Duke  of  York  and  Albany. 

Berkeley  and  Carteret  hastened  to  make  use  of  their  patent.  They  framed 
a constitution  of  government  for  the  new  domain  under  the  title  of  “The 
Concessions  and  Agreement  of  the  Lords  Proprietors  of  the  Province  of 


Chap.  VIII. 


SETTLEMENT  OF  NEW  JERSEY. 


273 


Nova  Caesarea  or  New  Jersey,  to  and  with  all  and  every  of  the  new  adven- 
turers and  all  such  as  shall  Settle  and  Plant  there.”  It  was  a fair  and  liberal 
constitution.  It  provided  for  a governor  and  council  appointed  by  the 
proprietors,  and  deputies  or  representatives  chosen  by  the  people,  who  should 
meet  annually,  and  with  the  governor  and  his  council  form  a General  Assem- 
bly for  the  government  of  the  colony.  It  provided  for  the  choice  of  a presi- 
dent by  the  representatives  when  in  session,  in  case  of  the  absence  of  the 
governor  and  deputy  governor.  All  legislative  power  was  vested  in  the 
Assembly  of  Deputies,  who  were  to  make  all  laws  for  the  province — these  to 
be  consistent  with  the  laws  and  customs  of  Great  Britain,  and  not  repugnant 
to  the  interests  of  the  proprietors.  Provision  was  also  made  for  the  encour- 
agement of  emigration  to  New  Jersey.  To  every  freeman  who  should  go  to 
that  province  with  the  first  governor,  furnished  with  a good  musket  and 
plenty  of  ammunition,  with  provisions  for  six  months,  was  offered  a free  gift 
of  one  hundred  and  fifty  acres  of  land  ; and  for  every  able  man-servant  that 
such  emigrant  should  take  with  him,  so  armed  and  provisioned,  a like  quan- 
tity of  land.  Any  person  sending  such  servants  should  be  likewise  rewarded  ; 
and  for  every  weaker  servant  or  slave,  of  either  sex,  over  fourteen  years  of 
age,  which  any  person  might  take  or  send,  at  that  time,  should  be  given 
seventy-five  acres  of  land  each,  “ Christian  servants  ” being  entitled,  at  the 
expiration  of  the  term  of  service,  to  the  land  so  granted  for  their  own  use 
and  benefit.  To  all  who  should  settle  in  the  province  before  the  beginning 
of  1665,  other  than  those  who  should  go  with  the  governor,  were  offered  one 
hundred  and  twenty  acres  of  land,  on  like  conditions. 

These  offers  were  certainly  attractive,  and  the  proprietors  expected  to 
see  their  country  rapidly  peopled  with  industrious  settlers.  They  appointed 
Philip  Carteret,  a cousin  of  Sir  George,  governor,  and  with  about  thirty  emi- 
grants, several  of  whom  were  Frenchmen  skilled  in  the  art  of  salt-making, 
he  sailed  for  New  York,  where  he  arrived  in  July,  1665.  The  vessel  had 
been  driven  into  Chesapeake  Bay  in  June  and  anchored  at  the  mouth  of  the 
James  River,  whence  the  governor  sent  despatches  to  New  York.  Among 
them  was  a copy  of  the  duke’s  grant  of  New  Jersey.  Governor  Nicolls  was 
astounded  by  the  folly  of  the  duke  in  parting  with  so  much  of  his  valuable 
domain,  for  he  regarded  Albania  as  the  “ most  improveable  ” part  of  the 
territory.  He  was  mortified  by  this  dismemberment  of  a state  over  which 
he  had  been  ruling  for  many  months  with  pride  and  satisfaction.  But  he 
kept  his  thoughts  between  his  lips  until  the  arrival  of  Carteret,  whom  Colo- 
nel Nicolls  received  at  Fort  James,  late  Fort  Amsterdam,  with  all  the  honors 
due  to  his  rank  and  station.  That  meeting  in  the  governor’s  quarters  in  the 
fort  was  a notable  one.  Nicolls  was  tall,  athletic,  and  about  forty-five  years 


274 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  II. 


of  age ; a soldier,  haughty  and  sometimes  very  irritable,  and  brusque  in 
speech  when  excited.  Carteret  was  shorter  and  fat,  good-natured  and  affa- 
ble, with  polished  manners  which  he  had  learned  by  being  much  at  court. 
He  entered  the  governor’s  room  with  Bollen,  the  commissary  of  the  fort, 
when  the  former  arose,  beckoned  his  secretary  to  withdraw,  and  received  his 
distinguished  visitor  cordially.  But  when  Carteret  presented  the  outspread 
parchment,  bearing  the  original  of  the  duke’s  grant  with  his  grace’s  seal  and 
signature,  Nicolls  could  not  restrain  his  feelings.  His  temper  flamed  out  in 
words  of  fierce  anger  at  first.  He  stormed,  and  uttered  denunciations  in 
language  as  respectful  as  possible.  He  paced  the  floor  backwards  and  for- 
wards rapidly,  his  hands  clenched  behind  his  back,  and  finally  calmed  down 
and  begged  his  visitor’s  pardon  for  his  uncontrollable  outburst  of  passion. 

Nicolls  yielded  gracefully  but  sorrowfully  to  circumstances,  and  contented 
himself  with  addressing  a manly  remonstrance  to  the  duke,  in  which  he 
urged  an  arrangement  for  the  grantees  to  give  up  their  domain  in  exchange 
for  “ a hundred  thousand  acres  all  along  the  sea-coast.”  It  was  too  late. 
In  pursuance  of  the  duke’s  orders,  Nicolls  formally  surrendered  Albania  into 
the  quiet  possession  of  Carteret,  and  thenceforth  that  region  appeared  as 
New  Jersey  on  the  maps.  Its  governor  crossed  over  to  his  domain  early  in 
August,  and  landed,  at  the  head  of  a few  followers,  with  a hoe  on  his 
shoulder  in  token  of  his  intention  to  become  a planter  among  them.  He 
chose  for  his  seat  of  government  a beautifully  shaded  spot  not  far  from  the 
strait  between  Staten  Island  and  the  main,  called  The  Kills,  where  he  found 
four  English  families  living  in  as  many  neatly-built  log  cabins,  with  gardens 
around  them.  In  compliment  to  the  wife  of  Sir  George  Carteret,  the  gover- 
nor gave  to  the  place  the  name  of  Elizabethtown,  which  it  yet  retains. 
There  he  built  a house  for  himself  near  the  bank  of  the  little  creek,  and 
there  he  organized  a civil  government.  So  was  laid  the  foundations  of  the 
colony  and  commonwealth  of  New  Jersey. 

The  land  on  which  Governor  Carteret  found  the  four  families  had  been 
bought  of  some  Indians  on  Long  Island,  who  claimed  it  as  their  own.  They 
gave  a deed  of  it  to  John  Bailey,  Daniel  Denton,  and  Luke  Watson  of 
Jamaica,  Long  Island,  and  Governor  Nicolls  granted  a patent  for  it  to 
seventy-four  associates,  whose  descendants  are  numerous  in  East  Jersey. 
This  patent  was  given  before  Nicolls  had  heard  of  the  extraordinary  grant 
of  the  Duke  of  York;  and  when  the  governor’s  grantees  were  informed  of 
that  transaction,  they  resolved  to  assert  their  rights,  as  against  the  claims  of 
the  duke’s  friends.  Some  of  the  company  went  to  Elizabethtown  to  confer 
with  Carteret  on  the  subject.  At  the  head  of  the  embassy  was  John  Ogden, 
of  Long  Island,  who  had  left  England  on  the  accession  of  Charles  the  Second 


Chap.  VIII. 


A REPUBLICAN  PROPHET. 


275 


to  the  throne,  for  he  was  a republican.  The  governor  received  them  under 
the  shadow  of  a great  tulip  tree  on  the  borders  of  the  creek,  and  there  the 
conference  was  held.  Ogden  showed  the  Indian  deed  and  the  Nicolls  grant. 
Carteret  showed  the  duke’s  grant  with  his  seal  and  signature  attached. 
Ogden  declared  that  Indian  titles  were  more  valid  than  royal  titles,  because 


GOVERNOR  CARTERET  ENTERING  NEW  JERSEY. 


the  grantors  were  the  original  owners  of  the  soil.  This  point  was  conceded, 
when  the  governor  pointed  to  the  lion  in  the  British  arms  impressed  upon 
the  seal,  as  an  emblem  of  competent  power,  intimating  that  might  makes 
right.  By  this  intimation  the  spirit  of  Ogden  was  powerfully  stirred.  Point- 
ing to  the  sun  as  the  visible  presence  of  the  Great  Spirit  whom  all  the 
Indians  worshipped,  he  said  : “ As  far  above  petty  kings  and  their  powers  as 
is  the  sun  in  the  heaven,  now  making  the  earth  teem  with  abundance  and 
beauty,  above  all  below,  so  far  is  justice,  the  prime  attribute  of  God,  above 
might — the  mere  brute  force  that  gives  kingship  to  the  lion  and  the  eagle 
among  beasts  and  birds.  The  Dutch  acquired  possession  of  this  soil  by  the 
divine  right  of  a just  purchase  from  the  Indians ; King  Charles  had  no  right 


2/6 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  II. 


to  this  domain  but  that  of  a strong-armed  robber.  The  British  lion  on  that 
seal  is,  in  this  case,  only  an  emblem  of  oppression  and  wrong,  whose  only 
warrant  for  injustice  is  his  strength  to  conquer.  In  this  land  monarchs  will 
yet  be  taught  that  they  have  no  divine  rights  not  the  common  property  of 
their  subjects,  and  that  there  is  more  strength  in  justice  than  in  the  sword.” 

John  Ogden  was  a prophet.  Under  that  tree  on  the  soil  of  New  Jersey, 
that  sturdy  republican  caught  luminous  visions  of  the  struggles  of  a people 
with  royalty  for  the  rights  of  man,  which,  more  than  a hundred  years  after- 
wards, led  to  the  dismemberment  of  the  British  empire  and  the  founding  of 
our  free  Republic.  Carteret  admired  his  spirit,  but  his  words  sounded  too 
much  like  the  voices  of  the  followers  of  Cromwell,  and  he  refused  to  hold 
further  conference  with  him.  “ Very  well,”  said  Ogden.  “We  shall  main- 
tain our  rights  as  best  we  may and  he  and  his  friends  were  about  to  depart, 
when  the  courteous  governor  invited  them  into  his  house  to  partake  of 
refreshments.  He  then  accompanied  them  to  their  boat  at  the  Kills,  and 
gave  them  a cordial  invitation  to  come  again  as  friends,  but  not  as  ambas- 
sadors. 

The  Long  Islanders  liked  the  good-natured  governor  personally,  and  to 
show  their  kind  feeling  toward  him  and  his  family,  they  gave  the  name  of 
“ Elizabethtown  Associates  ” to  their  company,  and  to  their  territory  the 
“ Elizabethtown  Grant.”  They  adhered  to  their  determination  to  defend 
their  rights;  and  during  the  seven  years  that  Philip  Carteret  governed  New 
Jersey,  there  were  frequent  and  severe  conflicts  between  the  “Associates” 
and  the  grantees  of  the  Duke  of  ^ork 


• . 


it 


I 


CHAPTER  IX. 


THE  “friends”  or  “QUAKERS" — WILLIAM  PENN  OBTAINS  A CHARTER  FOR  PENNSYLVANIA — 
EMIGRATION  TO  PENNSYLVANIA — PENN  VISITS  AMERICA — THE  SWEDES  ON  THE  DELAWARE — 
TREATY  WITH  THE  INDIANS — PENN  VISITS  NEW  YORK — MEETS  THE  FIRST  PENNSYLVANIA 
ASSEMBLY — VISITS  LORD  BALTIMORE — FOUNDS  PHILADELPHIA — SETTLERS  IN  NORTH  CAROLINA 
— THE  CAROLINAS  GRANTED  TO  ROYAL  FAVORITES  — SETTLEMENTS  ON  THE  CAPE  FEAR — 
CHARLESTON  FOUNDED — GOVERNMENT  FOR  THE  CAROLINAS  FRAMED. 

EER  in  the  seventeenth  century  than  the  period  of  settlement  in 
Delaware  and  New  Jersey,  was  the  domain  called  Pennsylvania 
colonized,  chiefly  by  a sect  called  Quakers  in  derision.  That  sect 
appeared  in  England  at  about  the  time  when  Roger  Williams  was  there  to 
procure  a charter  for  Rhode  Island.  Their  founder  and  preachers  were 
among  the  boldest  and  yet  the  meekest  of  the  non-conformists.  Their 
morality  was  so  strict  that  the  world  called  them  ascetics — persons  who 
devote  their  lives  to  religion  only.  They  carried  this  strictness  into  all 
departments  of  life  and  personal  habits.  Fashionable  dress,  extravagance 
in  expenditure,  dancing,  attendance  at  theatres,  games  of  chance  and  other 
amusements  were  forbidden  ; and  music  was  discouraged  as  a seductive  vanity. 
Taking  part  in  war,  slavery,  lawsuits,  intemperance  and  profanity  of  speech, 
was  a sufficient  reason,  if  persisted  in,  for  the  expulsion  of  a member  from 
the  Society;  and  the  whole  body  was  bound  to  keep  a watch  upon  the 
actions  of  each  other.  Their  practices  so  generally  agreed  with  their  prin- 
ciples that  society  was  compelled  to  admit  that  the  profession  of  a Quaker 
or  “ Friend,”  as  they  styled  themselves,  was  a guaranty  of  a morality  above 
the  level  of  the  world. 

George  Fox,  a shoemaker  of  Leicestershire,  England,  was  the  founder 
of  this  sect.  At  the  age  of  nineteen  years,  conceiving  himself  to  be  called 
by  God  to  preach  the  gospel  of  Jesus,  he  went  from  place  to  place  exhort- 
ing his  hearers  to  repentance  and  newness  of  life.  He  complained  of  the 
coldness  and  spiritual  deadness  of  all  the  modes  and  forms  of  religious  wor- 
ship around  him,  and  thereby  he  soon  excited  a persecuting  spirit  by  which 
his  ministerial  life  of  about  forty  years  was  marked  as  a pilgrimage  from  one 
prison  to  another.  When,  in  1650,  he  was  called  before  Justice  Bennet,  of 


278 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  II. 


Derby,  he  admonished  that  magistrate  to  repent,  and  “ tremble  and  quake 
before  the  word  of  the  Lord,”  at  the  same  time  his  own  body  was  violently 
agitated  by  emotion.  Then  and  there  the  sect  received  the  name  of 
Quakers. 

Among  the  multitude  of  converts  to  the  moral  and  religious  doctrines 
of  George  Fox  was  young  William  Penn,  a son  of  the  distinguished  admiral 
of  that  name.  He  embraced  the  doctrines  and  adopted  the  mode  of  life  of 
George  Fox  and  his  followers,  while  he  was  yet  in  college.  Then  he  had  a 

long  and  severe  struggle  with  his  father,  a 
worldly  and  ambitious  man,  for  the  privi- 
lege of  following  the  directions  of  his  con- 
science. He  was  beaten  and  turned  out 
of  doors  by  the  angry  admiral ; he  was 
sent  to  France  to  be  lured  with  gayety ; 
and  he  was  dazzled  with  promises  of 
wealth  and  distinction.  He  suffered  with 
his  sect.  On  one  occasion  he  was  tried, 
with  another,  on  a charge  of  preaching  in 
the  streets.  The  jury,  after  being  kept 
without  fire,  food  or  water  two  days  and 
nights,  brought  in  a verdict  of  “ not 
guilty,”  when  they  were  each  heavily  fined 
by  the  court  and  committed  to  Newgate; 
and  Penn  and  his  companion  were  also 
fined  and  imprisoned  for  contempt  of 
court  in  wearing  their  hats  in  the  presence 
of  that  body.  The  young  Quaker  was 
then  only  about  twenty-four  years  of  age. 

Many  “Friends”  had  emigrated  to 
America,  and  two  had  become  proprietors 
of  New  Jersey.  Penn  acted  as  umpire 
between  them,  in  a dispute  that  arose,  and 
so  his  particular  attention  was  drawn 
toward  this  country.  He  looked  with  longing  eyes  across  the  Atlantic  for 
a home  for  himself  and  his  sectarian  friends,  out  of  the  reach  of  persecution. 
From  the  crown  he  obtained  a charter  for  a vast  territory  beyond  the  Dela- 
ware, in  payment  of  a debt  of  eighty  thousand  dollars  due  to  his  father 
from  the  government,  with  perpetual  proprietaryship  given  to  him  and  his 
heirs,  in  the  fealty  of  an  annual  payment  of  two  beaver  skins.  Penn  pro- 
posed to  call  the  domain  “ New  Wales,”  in  honor  of  the  land  of  his  ances- 


Chap.  IX. 


FOUNDING  OF  PENNSYLVANIA. 


279 


tors,  but  the  Welch  secretary  of  state  objected.  Then  he  suggested  “ Syl- 
v^ania”  as  appropriate  for  such  a woody  country.  The  secretary  who  drew 
up  the  charter  prefixed  the  name  of  Penn  to  Sylvania.  in  the  document. 
The  proprietor  offered  him  a hundred  dollars  if  he  would  leave  it  off.  On 
his  refusal  to  do  so,  Penn  complained  to  the  king — the  “ merrie  King 
Charlie  ” — who  insisted  that  the  province  should  be  called  “ Pennsylvania,” 
in  honor  of  his  dead  friend  the  admiral.  And  so  it  was.  The  domain 
extended  north  from  New  Castle  in  Delaware  three  degrees  of  latitude,  and 
five  degrees  of  longitude  west  from  the  Delaware  River.  To  Penn  was 
given  power  to  ordain  all  laws  with  the  consent  of  the  freemen,  subject  to 
the  approval  of  the  king.  No  taxes  were  to  be  raised  except  by  the  Pro- 
vincial Assembly ; and  clergymen  of  the  Anglican  Church  were  to  be 
allowed  to  reside  in  the  province  without  molestation. 

Penn’s  charter  was  granted  on  the  14th  of  March,  1681.  In  May  he 
sent  his  kinsman,  William  Markham,  to  take  possession  of  his  province  and 
to  act  as  deputy  governor.  A large  company  of  emigrants  went  with  him. 
They  were  employed  by  the  “ Company  of  Free  Traders,”  who  had  pur- 
chased lands  in  Pennsylvania  of  the  proprietor.  They  seated  themselves 
near  the  Delaware  and  “ builded  and  planted.”  With  the  help  of  Algernon 
Sidney,  the  sturdy  republican  martyr  who  perished  on  the  scaffold  soon 
afterward,  Penn  drew  up  a code  of  wise,  liberal  and  benevolent  regulations 
for  the  government  of  the  colony,  and  sent  them  to  the  settlers  the  next 
year  for  their  approval.  It  was  not  a formal  constitution,  but  a body  of 
wholesome  laws  for  the  benefit  of  all  concerned. 

Penn  found  that  the  want  of  a seaboard  for  his  province  would  be  a serious 
bar  to  its  future  prosperity.  He  coveted  Delaware  for  that  purpose,  and 
resolved  to  have  it  if  possible.  It  was  claimed  by  Lord  Baltimore  as  a part 
of  Maryland,  and  had  been  a matter  of  dispute  between  him  and  the  Duke 
of  York.  The  latter,  for  the  sake  of  peace,  offered  to  buy  the  territory  of 
Baltimore.  The  baron  would  not  sell.  Penn  then  assured  the  duke  that 
Lord  Baltimore’s  claim  was  “ against  law,  civil  or  common.”  The  duke 
gladly  assented  to  the  opinion,  and  the  worldly-wise  Quaker  obtained  from  his 
grace  a quit-claim  deed  for  the  territory  comprising  the  whole  State  of  Dela- 
ware, then,  as  now,  divided  into  the  counties  of  Newcastle,  Kent,  and  Sussex ; 
also  for  all  of  his  interest  in  the  soil  of  Pennsylvania. 

When  Penn  had  gained  these  coveted  possessions,  he  made  immediate 
preparations  for  going  to  America  ; and  within  a week  after  the  bargain  was 
officially  settled,  he  set  sail  in  the  ship  Welcome  with  about  one  hundred 
emigrants,  many  of  whom  died  of  small-pox  on  the  voyage.  That  was  at 
the  close  of  August,  1682.  On  his  arrival  at  New  Castle  early  in  November, 
<9 


28o 


OUK  COUNTRY. 


Hook  II. 


he  found  almost  a thousand  new  emigrants  there.  These,  with  the  three 
thousand  old  settlers — Swedes,  Dutch,  Huguenots,  Germans  and  English — 
composed  materials  for  the  solid  foundation  of  a state.  There,  in  the 
presence  of  the  people,  he  received  from  the  agents  of  the  Duke  of  York  a 
formal  surrender  into  his  hands  of  that  fine  domain.  The  Dutch  had,  long 
before,  conquered  and  absorbed  the  Swedes  on  the  Delaware ; and  by  virtue 
of  his  charter,  giving  him  a title  to  all  New  Netherland,  the  duke  claimed 
this  territory  as  his  own.  By  this  transfer,  Penn  inherited  for  himself  and 
descendants  a dispute  with  the  proprietors  of  Maryland.  In  honor  of  the 
duke,  the  courteous  Quaker  called  Cape  Henlopen  Cape  James,  but  the  two 
capes  of  the  Delaware — Henlopen  and  May — have  preserved  their  original 
name  given  to  them  by  the  Dutch. 

Having  secured  his  domain,  Penn  went  many  miles  up  the  Delaware 
River,  to  the  present  Kensington  district  of  Philadelphia,  and  there,  under  a 


wide-spreading  elm,  just  shedding  its  foliage,  he  concluded  a treaty  with 
Indian  chiefs,  not  for  the  purchase  of  lands,  but  to  confirm  what  Markham 
had  promised  them  for  him,  and  to  make  an  everlasting  covenant  of  peace 
and  friendship  with  them.  “We  meet,”  Penn  said,  “in  the  broad  pathway 
of  good  faith  and  good  will ; no  advantage  shall  be  taken  on  either  side,  but 
all  shall  be  openness  and  love.  I will  not  call  you  children  ; for  parents 
sometimes  chide  their  children  too  severely;  nor  brothers,  only;  for  brothers 
differ.  The  friendship  between  me  and  you,  I will  not  compare  to  a chain ; 


PENN’S  TREATY  WITH  THE  INDIANS. 


V' 


■^1; 


*r*. 


■<  ' ■ 

4 : n^_ 


r 


'[.  - 
z<  ■ 

/ . 

» ■''  ir  . 

^ ..  T, 

. j*-  V - ■ 

♦ ■ »*  • 

'.tj' 

.4U- 

‘•f 

$ 

■1  • ^ * 

•-'  'y 

_^V  - ' 

■*  ^ ’’'f  •’•  ■'* 

■ 

' r*  ■;*/( 


'!■  »-<^v*at 


! ”^.’pr£/t 

V#.0{ 


■■  >•- " -'■|',V'«-r 

♦►■  ’iM 


C>' 


Chap.  IX. 


PENN’S  TREATY  WITH  THE  INDIANS. 


281 


for  that  the  rains  might  rust,  or  a falling  tree  might  break.  We  are  the  same 
as  if  one  man’s  body  was  to  be  divided  into  two  parts;  we  are  all  one  flesh 
and  blood.”  Then  he  gave  them  presents,  and  they  in  turn  handed  him  a 
belt  of  wampum  as  a pledge  of  their  fidelity.  They  were  delighted  with 
his  divine  words,  and  believed  in  his  noble  promises.  “ We  will  live  in  love 
with  William  Penn  and  his  children,”  they  said,  “ as  long  as  the  sun  and 
moon  shall  endure.”  And  they  did.  Not  a drop  of  the  blood  of  a Quaker 
was  ever  shed  by  an  Indian. 

William  Penn  had  achieved  a marvellous  victory  over  the  savage  arm  and 
the  savage  spirit.  While  in  other  colonies  the  might  of  the  sword  and 
musket,  of  the  arrow  and  the  hatchet,  were  making  fearfully  red  records  of 
crime ; while  the  savages  were  in  fierce  array,  secretly  and  openly,  against 
the  pale-faced  intruders,  Penn  had  conquered  and  subdued  those  of  Pennsyl- 
vania by  love.  There  were  not  even  contentions  between  the  races  there. 
“We  have  done  better,”  said  the  Friends,  in  their  Plantation  Speech,  in 
1684,  “than  if,  with  the  proud  Spaniards,  we  had  gained  the  mines  of  Potosi. 
We  may  make  the  ambitious  heroes  whom  the  world  admires,  blush  for 
their  shameful  victories.  To  the  poor,  dark  souls  round  about  us,  we  teach 
their  rights  as  MEN.”  Significant  is  the  question  of  the  historian  : “ Was 
there  not  progress  from  Melendez  to  Roger  Williams.?  from  Cortez  and 
Pizarro  to  William  Penn  ? ” 

There  is  no  written  record  of  that  treaty  made  in  the  open  air  on  the 
banks  of  the  Delaware.  We  have  accounts  of  the  personal  character  of  the 
council.  Penn  was  then  a graceful  man,  strong  built  and  of  fair  complexion, 
and  thirty-eight  years  of  age.  Most  of  his  companions  were  younger  than 
himself,  and  all  were  dressed  in  the  garb  of  the  Quakers — the  fashion  of  the 
more  simple  Puritans  during  the  Protectorate  of  Cromwell.  The  Indians 
were  clad  in  the  .skins  of  beasts,  for  it  was  on  the  verge  of  winter — their  har- 
vest time  was  over.  Frost  and  expanding  buds  were  stripping  the  trees  of 
their  foliage,  and  every  aspect  of  the  scene  was  becoming  dreary  excepting  the 
bright  council-fire  under  the  great  elm  around  which  the  high  contracting 
parties  were  gathered.  Penn  was  accompanied  by  the  deputy  governor  and 
a few  others ; and  the  Indian  sachems  brought  their  wives  and  children,  who 
sat  upon  the  ground  modestly  back. 

From  that  treaty  place,  Penn  journeyed  through  New  Jersey  to  New 
York  and  Long  Island,  visiting  Friends  and  preaching  with  fervor.  Then 
he  returned  to  the  Delaware,  and  on  the  seventh  of  November  he  went  to 
Uplands  (now  Chester),  where  he  met  the  first  Provincial  Assembly  of  his 
province.  There  he  made  known  his  benevolent  designs  toward  all  men, 
civilized  and  savage,  and  excited  the  love  and  reverence  of  his  hearers.  The 


282 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  11. 


Assembly  tendered  their  grateful  acknowledgments  to  him,  and  the  Swedes 
authorized  one  of  their  number  to  say  to  him  in  their  name  that  they  would 
“ live,  serve  and  obey  him  with  all  they  had,”  declaring  that  it  “was  the 
best  day  they  ever  saw.”  He  informed  the  Assembly  of  the  union  of  the 
“ territories  ” (as  Delaware  was  called)  with  his  province,  and  received  their 
congratulations.  Then  was  laid  the  foundations  of  the  commonwealth  of 


Pennsylvania. 

From  Chester,  Penn  went  to  Maryland  to  confer  with  the  third  Lord 
Baltimore  concerning  their  boundary  lines,  but  did  not  make  a .satisfactory 

arrangement.  On  his  return,  he 
went  up  the  Delaware  in  an 
open  boat  to  Wicaco,  to  attend 
the  founding  of  a city,  to  which 
allusion  had  been  made  in  his 
“Concessions,  &c.,”  in  i68i. 
Before  his  arrival  in  this  country 
he  had  determined  to  give  to  the 
future  city  the  name  of  Phila- 
dclp/iia — a Greek  word  signify- 
ing bi'othcrly  love — as  a token  of 
the  principles  in  which  he  in- 
tended to  govern  his  province. 
Near  a block-house  which  the 
Swedes  had  built,  and  which 
they  had  changed  into  a church, 
he  purchased  lands  extending 
from  the  high  banks  of  the 
Delaware  fringed  with  pines  to 
those  of  the  Schuylkill.  There 
his  surveyors  laid  out  the  city  of 
Philadelphia  upon  a plan  which 

A PLEDGE  OF  FRIENDSHIP.  ,11  , 

would  embrace  twelve  square 
miles. 

Although  the  efforts  of  Raleigh  and  Coligny  to  make  settlements  in  the 
warmer  portions  of  North  America  had  utterh’  failed,  and  the  country  south 
of  the  James  River  was  untrodden  by  the  foot  of  the  white  man  unless  by  the 
few  survivors  of  the  lost  colony  of  Roanoke  Island  or  around  the  .Spanish 
fort  at  St.  Augustine,  the  desire  to  plant  colonies  there  remained  strong, 
and  finally  led  to  the  wished-for  result.  From  time  to  time  restless,  discon- 
tented, adventurous  or  greedy  persons  went  there  to  find  homes  for  them- 


Chap.  IX. 


EMIGRATION  TO  NORTH  CAROLINA. 


283 


selves  and  their  children,  or  to  acquire  fortunes,  but  no  permanent  settle- 
ment was  planted  until  past  the  middle  of  the  seventeenth  century. 

So  early  as  1609,  some  colonists  under  the  direction  of  Captain  John 
Smith  left  Jamestown  and  seated  themselves  on  the  Nansemond  River,  near 
the  Dismal  Swamp.  In  1622,  the  ambitious  Porey,  Secretary  of  the  Vir- 
ginia colony,  penetrated  the  country  southward  to  the  tide-waters  of  the 
Chowan  River.  He  told,  in  earnest  words,  of  the  beauty  and  richness  of 
the  country,  but  did  not  induce  settlers  to  go  there.  Eight  years  later,  as 
we  have  observed.  Sir  Robert  Heath,  the  Attorney  General  of  Charles  the 
First,  obtained  from  his  king  a charter  for  a domain  south  of  Virginia,  six 
degrees  of  latitude  in  width,  and  extending  westward  to  the  Pacific  Ocean. 
This  included  the  region  between  Albemarle  Sound  and  the  St.  John’s  River 
in  Florida.  That  patent  was  declared  void  in  1663,  because  neither  the 
proprietor  nor  his  assigns  had  fulfilled  their  agreements. 

Sufferers  from  the  oppression  of  the  State  Church  in  Virginia  locked  to 
the  wilderness  for  freedom,  as  the  Huguenots  and  the  Pilgrims  had  done. 
In  1653,  a few  Presbyterians  from  Jamestown  settled  on  the  Chowan  River 
near  the  present  village  of  Edenton.  Other  non-conformists  followed,  and 
the  settlement  flourished.  Already  the  New  England  colonies  had  begun 
to  swarm.  The  Massachusetts  hive  had  become  too  small;  and  in  1661, 
some  adventurous  New  Englanders  appeared  in  a small  vessel,  in  the  Cape 
Fear  River,  in  search  of  a home  in  a more  genial  climate.  They  purchased 
lands  of  the  Indians,  and  were  making  the  experiment  of  establishing  a 
colony  of  farmers  and  herdsmen  there,  when  news  came  that  the  whole 
region  had  been  given  by  Charles  the  Second  to  some  of  his  favorites.  The 
New  Englanders  had  partners  in  their  enterprise,  in  London.  These 
pleaded,  in  behalf  of  the  claims  of  the  colonists,  their  prior  purchase  of  the 
soil,  and  also  their  right  to  self-government.  A compromise  was  offered  by 
the  patentees,  yielding  to  ev^ery  claim  of  the  settlers  excepting  the  owner- 
ship of  the  soil ; and  that  they  offered  at  a yearly  rent  of  a half-penny  an 
acre.  The  soil  was  not  inviting  enough  for  those  who  might  choose  a dwell- 
ing-place from  almost  an  entire  continent.  Most  of  the  New  Englanders 
returned  home  and  “ spread  a reproach  on  the  harbor  and  the  soil  ” at  Cape 
Fear. 

The  grant  alluded  to  was  made  to  several  of  the  rapacious  courtiers  of 
Charles  the  Second,  the  most  of  them  men  past  middle-life  in  age,  and  pos- 
•sessed  of  the  easy  virtue  which  distinguished  the  reign  of  that  monarch. 
They  begged  the  domain  of  the  king  under  the  pretence  of  “ a pious  zeal  for 
the  propagation  of  the  gospel”  among  the  heathen.  Their  real  object  was 
to  rob  the  “ heathen  ” of  their  lands,  and  to  accumulate  riches  and  honor 


284 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  II. 


for  themselves.  These  grantees  were  the  covetous  and  time-serving  Earl  of 
Clarendon,  the  historian  and  the  Prime  Minister;  Monk,  who,  for  his  con- 
spicuous and  treacherous  services  in  the  restoration  of  Charles  to  the  throne 
of  his  father,  had  been  created  Duke  of  Albemarle ; Lord  Craven,  who  is 
supposed  to  have  been  the  husband  of  the  Queen  of  Bohemia ; Sir  Anthony 
Ashley  Cooper,  afterward  Earl  of  Shaftesbury;  Sir  John  Colleton,  a corrupt 
loyalist  who  had  played  false  to  Cromwell;  Lord  John  Berkeley  and  his 
younger  brother.  Sir  William,  who  was  then  governor  of  Virginia ; and  the 
“ passionate,  ignorant  and  not  too  honest”  Sir  George  Carteret,  proprietor 
of  New  Jersey.  It  is  said  that  when  these  petitioners  appeared  before 
Charles  in  the  garden  at  Hampton  Court  and  presented  their  memorial  so 
full  of  pious  pretensions,  the  monarch,  after  looking  each  in  the  face  for  a 
moment,  with  a merry  twinkle  of  his  eye,  burst  into  loud  laughter,  in  which 
his  audience  joined  involuntarily.  Then  taking  up  a little  shaggy  spaniel, 
with  large,  meek  eyes,  and  holding  it  at  arms  length  before  them,  he  said  : 
“ Good  friends,  here  is  a model  of  piety  and  sincerity  which  might  be  whole- 
some for  you  to  copy.”  Then  tossing  the  little  pet  to  Clarendon,  he  said  : 
“ There,  Hyde,  is  a worthy  prelate ; make  him  archbishop  of  the  domain 
which  I shall  give  you.”  He  granted  the  prayer  of  the  petitioners,  and  in 
March,  1663,  he  gave  them  a charter  for  the  territory  which  had  been  given 
to  Sir  Robert  Heath.  By  the  terms  of  that  charter,  the  proprietors  were 
made  absolute  sovereigns  of  the  domain,  returning  to  their  king  only  a bare 
allegiance.  Charles,  with  grim  satire,  introduced  into  the  preamble  of  the 
charter  the  statement  that  the  petitioners,  “ excited  with  a laudable  and 
pious  zeal  for  the  propagation  of  the  Gospel,  have  begged  a certain  country 
in  the  parts  of  America  not  yet  cultivated  and  planted,  and  only  inhabited 
by  some  barbarous  people  who  have  no  knowledge  of  God.”  The  title  of 
“ Carolina,”  in  honor  of  the  king,  was  given  to  this  vast  domain. 

We  have  observed  that  some  non-conformists  from  Virginia  were  settled 
on  the  banks  of  the  Chowan  ten  years  before  the  charter  was  granted.  How 
extensive  was  the  settlement  at  the  latter  period,  we  do  not  know.  The 
plantations  were  mostly  on  the  northern  bank  of  the  Chowan,  and  had 
become  so  conspicuous  that  in  the  autumn  of  1663  the  new  proprietors 
authorized  Governor  Berkeley,  of  Virginia,  to  extend  his  jurisdiction  over 
them.  He  organized  a separate  government  instead,  under  the  title  of  the 
Albemarle  County  Colony,  so  named  in  honor  of  Monk.  He  appointed 
William  Drummond,  a Presbyterian  emigrant  from  Scotland  to  Virginia,  and 
a republican  at  heart,  governor,  and  gave  to  the  colonists  every  freedom 
which  they  could  reasonably  desire.  Here  was  presented  the  anomaly  of  a 
colony  founded  under  the  direction  and  control  of  rigid  churchmen  and 


Chap.  IX- 


THE  CAROLINAS. 


285 


royalists  who  were  filling  the  prisons  of  England  with  men  like  John 
Bunyan,  composed  of  non-conformists  as  rigid  as  these,  and  republicans  as 
staunch  as  Sidney.  And  they  were  left  to  grow  into  an  independent  state 
with  very  little  hindrance. 

Two  years  later  some  English  emigrants  came  from  Barbadoes,  purchased 
from  the  Indians  a tract  of  land  on  the  Cape  Fear  River,  thirty-two  miles 
square,  including  the  domain  abandoned  by  the  New  Englanders,  and  near 
the  site  of  Wilmington  founded  a settlement.  They  treated  the  few  New 
Englanders  who  had  remained  very  kindly,  and  harmony  prevailed.  This 
settlement  was  soon  organized  into  a political  community  under  the  title 
of  the  Clarendon  County  Colony,  in  honor  of  the  historian.  Sir  John  Yea 
mans,  an  impoverished  baronet  who  had  settled  in  Barbadoes  to  improve  his 
fortune,  was  appointed  governor  of  the  new  colony,  with  a jurisdiction 
extending  from  Cape  Fear  to  the  St.  John’s  River.  The  poverty  of  the  soil 
prevented  a rapid  growth  of  the  settlement,  yet  the  industry  of  the  inhabi- 
tants made  them  prosperous.  Finding  themselves  in  the  bosom  of  a vast 
pine  forest,  the  settlers  turned  their  labor  into  the  manufacture  of  boards, 
shingles  and  staves,  and  the  gathering  of  turpentine,  for  all  of  which  they 
found  a ready  and  profitable  sale  in  the  West  Indies.  The  settlement 
became  permanent ; and  so,  with  the  organization  of  the  two  colonies,  the 
foundation  of  the  commonwealth  of  North  Carolina  was  laid. 

The  avaricious  courtiers  now  sought  the  acquisition  of  more  territory, 
and  in  June,  1665,  they  readily  obtained  from  the  king  another  charter 
which  confirmed  the  former  one,  and  gave  renewed  assurance  and  commen- 
dation of  the  “ pious  and  noble  purpose  ” under  which  these  men  thought  it 
decent  to  cloak  their  ambition  and  rapacity.  It  granted  to  them  the  terri- 
tory from  the  now  southern  boundary  of  Virginia  to  the  peninsula  of 
Florida,  and  westward  to  the  Pacific  Ocean,  comprising  all  of  our  States 
excepting  the  low^er  part  of  P'lorida  south  of  the  thirty-sixth  degree,  and  a 
part  of  Mexico,  the  whole  under  the  name  of  Carolina.  The  terms  of  the 
charter  give  evidence  that  the  founding  of  a great  empire  w'as  contemplated. 
Provision  was  made  for  the  appointment  of  legislators  and  magistrates;  for 
levying  troops  and  erecting  fortifications ; waging  war  by  sea  and  land ; 
erecting  cities ; establishing  manors  and  baronies,  and  creating  titles ; levy- 
ing impost  duties ; and  other  features  coincident  with  those  of  the  existing 
British  government.  “ Every  favor  w^as  extended  to  the  proprietors,”  says 
an  eminent  historian  ; “ nothing  was  neglected  but  the  interests  of  the  Eng- 
lish sovereign  and  the  rights  of  the  colonists.”  It  was  the  duty  of  Claren- 
don, as  Prime  Minister  of  the  realm,  to  affix  the  great  seal  of  the  kingdom 
to  this  charter  that  conferred  such  extraordinary  privileges  upon  himself  and 
his  seven  associates. 


286 


OUR  COUNTRV. 


H(K)K  II. 


In  the  year  1670,  the  proprietors  sent  three  ships  with  emigrants  to  settle 
tlie  more  southern  portions  of  Carolina.  These  were  under  the  directions 
of  William  Sayle  and  Joseph  West.  Sayle  had  already  explored  the  coasts; 
and  twenty  years  before,  he  had  endeavored  to  plant  in  the  Bahama  Isles  a 
Puritan  colony  from  Virginia,  and  to  establish  an  “ Eleutheria  ” — a place 
dedicated  to  liberty — among  the  islands  near  the  coast  of  P'lorida.  The 
three  ships  entered  Port  Royal  harbor,  and  the  emigrants  landed  at  Beaufort 
Island,  near  the  place  where  the  Huguenots  built  P'ort  Carolina  a hundred 
years  before.  There  Sayle  died  early  in  the  following  year,  and  was  buried 
under  a broad  live-oak  tree  draped  with  Spanish  moss.  The  emigrants 


SETTLERS  IN  SOUTH  CAROLINA. 


abandoned  Beaufort  soon  afterward,  and  sailing  northward  entered  Charles- 
ton harbor.  On  the  banks  of  a stream  a few  miles  above  the  site  of 
Charleston,  they  landed,  built  houses  and  cultivated  the  soil.  There  they 
planted  the  first  seeds  of  the  colony  of  South  Carolina  at  a spot  known  as 
Old  Town. 

The  settlers  found  the  Indians  unfriendly,  for  tradition  had  taught  them 
to  believe  that  the  white  man  was  a cruel  robber.  The  planters  were  com- 
pelled to  labor  in  the  fields  and  on  the  waters,  well-armed,  yet  they  pros- 


Chap.  IX. 


EMIGRATION  TO  SOUTH  CAROLINA. 


287 


pered ; and  they  soon  conquered  the  savages  by  kindness.  West  exercised 
the  authority  of  magistrate  until  the  arrival  of  Sir  John  Yeamans  from  Bar- 
badoes  with  the  commission  of  governor  late  in  1661.  He  brought  with 
him  fifty  families  and  many  negro  slaves.  This  was  the  introduction  of 
slave-labor  into  South  Carolina,  which  has  always  been  pre-eminently  a 
planting  state. 

The  settlement  at  Old  Town  was  organized  under  the  title  of  the  Carteret 
County  Colony,  and  representative  government  was  established  there  in  1672. 
So  was  founded  the  commonwealth  of  South  Carolina.  It  was  known  as  a 
place  where  freedom  was  enjoyed,  and  emigrants  flocked  to  it  from  England, 
Holland,  and  New  York.  They  spread  over  the  peninsula  between  the 
Ashley  and  another  stream  which  they  called  the  Cooper  River,  both  so 
named  in  honor  of  Ashley  Cooper,  one  of  the  proprietors.  At  Oyster 
Point,  at  the  junction  of  three  streams,  on  the  verge  of  a fine  harbor  and  in 
sight  of  the  sea,  they  laid  the  foundations  of  a capital  city  for  the  province 
eight  or  ten  years  later,  and  named  it  Charles  Town  (Charleston)  in  com- 
pliment to  the  king.  Old  Town  was  abandoned,  and  the  new  village 
flourished.  Very  soon  thriving  settlements  were  seen  along  the  Santee  and 
Edisto  Rivers ; and  the  region  between  the  Ashley  and  Cooper — the  Ke-a- 
wah  and  E-ti-wan  of  the  Indians — became  quite  populous  with  industrious 
inhabitants. 

We  have  observed  that  it  was  designed  to  establish  a great  empire  in  the 
region  of  the  Carolinas.  It  was  deemed  proper  to  devise  a scheme  of  govern- 
ment commensurate  with  that  grand  idea.  To  Sir  Ashley  Cooper,  and  the 
philosopher  John  Locke,  was  entrusted  the  task  of  framing  a constitution. 
Cooper  was  then  about  forty-seven  years  of  age,  and  in  the  full  maturity  of 
his  genius  and  power.  He  was  of  an  old  and  wealthy  family,  and  was  con- 
nected with  some  of  the  most  distinguished  members  of  the  English  aris- 
tocracy. He  was  now  a royalist  of  the  strictest  pattern.  A few  years  later 
(1672),  he  was  elevated  to  the  peerage  as  Earl  of  Shaftesbury,  and  made 
Lord  High  Chancellor  of  England.  Locke  was  much  younger — only  thirty- 
four — but  was  a more  profound  thinker  than  Cooper,  and  was  already 
famous  as  a philosopher.  He  was  a tutor  of  Cooper’s  son.  His  views  of 
government  were  consonant  with  those  of  his  friend,  the  statesman  and 
courtier.  Neither  of  these  men  was  fitted  for  the  task  of  framing  an  accept- 
able constitution  for  the  government  of  a free  people,  and  the  magnificent 
scheme  which  they  prepared,  with  the  title  of  “ Fundamental  Constitutions’,” 
was  entirely  inconsistent  with  the  condition  and  circumstances  of  the 
American  colonists.  It  was  the  production  chiefly  of  the  brain  and  hand  of 
Locke,  it  is  believed,  and  was  perfected  in  1669. 


1 


288 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  11. 


For  purposes  of  settlement,  the  proposed  constitution  provided  for  dividing 
the  vast  domain  into  countie.s,  each  to  contain  four  hundred  and  eighty 
thousand  acres.  These  lands  were  to  be  distributed  in  five  equal  parts,  one-  I 

fifth  to  remain  the  inalienable  property  of  the  proprietors ; another  fifth  the  I 

inalienable  property  of  two  orders  of  nobility,  namely,  landgraves  or  earls, 
and  caciques  or  barons,  one  of  the  former  and  two  of  the  latter  belonging  to  ; 

each  county;  and  the  remaining  three-fifths  to  belong  to  “ the  peoples,”  that 
is  to  say,  farmers  and  lords  of  manors,  the  latter  having  no  prescriptive  legis- 
lative powers,  but  exercising  judicial  functions  on  their  respective  domains, 
in  baronial  courts.  The  number  of  the  nobility  was  not  to  be  increased  nor 
diminished,  the  places  of  those  who  should  not  leave  heirs,  to  be  supplied  by 
election.  It  gave  to  every  freeman  of  Carolina  absolute  power  over  his 
negro  slaves ; and  tenants,  cultivating  small  quantities  of  land,  were  not  only  , 

to  be  denied  political  franchises  of  any  kind,  but  were  serfs  of  the  soil,  and 
under  the  jurisdiction  of  their  lord,  without  appeal ; and  all  their  children 
were  to  endure  the  same  social  degradation  “ to  all  generations.” 

When  that  elaborate  constitution,  which  provided  for  titles,  and  classes,  j 

and  aristocratic  distinctions  in  America,  was  submitted  to  the  people  of  the  j 

Carolinas,  they  rejected  it  as  absurd  in  its  details.  They  had  made  judicious 
laws  for  their  own  government,  were  satisfied  with  their  workings,  and 
resolved  to  have  nothing  to  do  with  the  scheme  of  the  proprietors.  Under 
their  own  laws  they  built  up  flourishing  colonies,  inseparable  in  interests  and 
aims,  and  so  they  remained  over  sixty  years,  when  they  were  dismembered 
and  formed  the  separate  colonies  of  North  and  South  Carolina. 


CHAPTER  X. 


THE  ENGLISH  AND  SPANIARDS — SLAVES  IN  SOI  TH  CAROLINA — PRISONERS  FOR  DEBT  IN  ENGLAND 
— REVELATIONS  OF  THE  PRISONS — MEASURES  FOR  THE  RELIEF  OF  THE  PRISONERS — CHARTER 
FOR  GEORGIA  GRANTED— GENERAL  OGLETHORPE  ACCOMPANIES  EMIGRANTS  TO  THE  SAVANNAH 
RIVER — JOY  OF  THE  CAROLINIANS — FRIENDSHIP  OF  THE  INDIANS — TO-MO-CHI-CIII — A TREATY 
— INDIANS  ACCOMPANY  OGLETHORPE  TO  ENGLAND  — THEIR  RECEPTION  THERE — OGLETHORPE 
RETURNS  TO  GEORGIA  WITH  THE  WESLEYS — AN  UNWISE  CODE  FOR  GEORGIA. 

Selfishness  and  philanthropy  went  hand  in  hand  in  promoting 
English  settlements  in  the  country  south  of  the  Savannah  River. 
There  seemed  to  be  an  unconquerable  antagonism  between  the 
Spaniards  and  the  English,  in  both  hemispheres.  The  Spaniards  viewed 
with  jealousy  the  rapid  increase  of  English  settlements  in  America,  especially 
in  the  region  bordering  on  Florida,  which  the  Castilians  held  by  right  of 
undoubted  first  discovery.  They  saw  the  English  rapidly  gaining  the 
monopoly  of  the  trade  with  the  Indians  and  exercising  a wide  influence  over 
the  native  inhabitants  in  the  Gulf  region,  who  had  been  taught  by  past  sad 
experience  to  look  upon  the  Spaniards  as  their  abiding  enemies.  Therefore 
the  Castilians  in  Florida  were  disposed  to  cast  obstacles  in  the  way  of  an 
extension  of  the  English  colonies  southward. 

Early  in  the  eighteenth  century.  South  Carolina  was  well  stocked  with 
slaves  from  Africa,  especially  in  the  rice-planting  districts,  where  negroes 
performed  nearly  all  of  the  manual  labor.  They  had  become  essential  to 
the  prosperity  of  the  colony.  The  Spaniards  believed  that  the  most  effec- 
tual way  to  discourage  the  English  planters  and  to  prevent  their  making 
settlements  below  the  Savannah  River,  would  be  to  entice  away  their  slaves 
by  promises  of  the  freedom  and  the  privileges  of  the  Spanish  subjects.  This 
measure  was  successfully  employed.  A complete  regiment  was  formed  at  St. 
Augustine  of  runaway  slaves  from  South  Carolina ; and  they  were  taught  to 
hate  the  English  as  their  enemies.  This  was  an  alarming  state  of  things  for 
the  South  Carolinians,  and  they  anxiously  sought  a remedy  for  the  evil. 

Between  the  Savannah  and  Alatamaha  rivers,  there  was  a region  wholly 
unoccupied  by  w'hite  inhabitants  at  the  end  of  the  first  quarter  of  the 
eighteenth  century.  The  South  Carolinians  proposed  to  erect  a barrier 


290 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  II. 


between  themselve.s  and  the  Spaniards  in  Florida,  by  the  planting  of  an 
English  colony  in  that  region.  They  asked  the  British  government  to  do  so. 
There  were  great  obstacles  in  the  way.  Voluntary  emigrants  preferred  a 
settled  country  away  from  immediate  danger  from  foes;  and  a penal  colony 
for  British  convicts  was  not  desirable. 

At  that  juncture,  the  subject  of  the  condition  of  prisoners  for  debt  in 
Great  Britain,  was  attracting  general  attention.  These  men,  unconvicted  of 
any  crime,  were  crowding  the  jails  of  the  kingdom,  and  enduring  sufferings 
more  horrible  than  those  inflicted  upon  negro  slaves  in  the  West  Indies. 
Disease  and  moral  degradation  were  making  .sad  havoc  among  them.  The 
hearts  of  the  benevolent  yearned  to  relieve  them.  A humane  and  wealthy 
citizen  of  London  bequeathed  his  fortune  to  the  government  to  be  employed 
in  liberating  the  most  deserving  insolvent  debtors  from  the  jails,  where  they 
were  doomed  to  hopeless  indigence  and  misery  by  the  cruel  laws  oftentimes 
more  cruelly  administered. 

This  act  caused  the  appointment  of  a committee  by  Parliament  to 
inquire  into  the  condition  of  prisoners  for  debt.  It  was  done  at  the  sugges- 
tion of  Colonel  James  Edward  Oglethorpe,  a graduate  of  Oxford,  a brave 
soldier,  and  then  a member  of  Parliament.  That  was  in  the  year  1728. 
Colonel  Oglethorpe  was  made  chairman  of  the  committee,  and  they  entered 
upon  their  duties  with  vigor.  The  revelations  of  the  prisons  were  horrible 
and  sickening.  The  writings  of  the  afterwards  illustrious  Howard  give  us 
vivid  pen-pictures  of  the  scenes.  The  pencil  of  Hogarth  has  left  us  actual 
delineations  of  them.  The  English  merchant,  unfortunate  in  his  business, 
was  often  suddenly  plunged  from  a sphere  of  affluence  and  usefulness,  to  the 
dreadful  dens  called  prisons,  there  to  herd  with  the  ignorant  and  vile  in 
hopeless  poverty  and  degradation. 

Oglethorpe  stood  before  one  of  these  men  who  had  been  a distinguished 
alderman,  in  London,  when  he  was  a boy,  and  had  been  highly  esteemed  for 
his  many  virtues  and  practical  benevolence.  He  had  also  been  a “ merchant 
prince,”  but  had  been  ruined  by  great  losses.  His  creditors  sent  him  to  prison. 
In  an  instant  he  was  compelled  to  exchange  a happy  home  and  delightful 
society  for  a loathsome  prison  cell  and  the  company  of  the  debased.  One 
by  one  his  friends,  who  could  aid  him  in  keeping  famine  from  his  wretched 
abode,  disappeared,  and  he  was  forgotten  by  the  outside  world.  Twenty- 
three  years  he  had  been  in  jail.  Gray-headed,  haggard,  ragged  and  perish- 
ing with  hunger,  he  lay  upon  a heap  of  filthy  straw  in  a dark,  damp,  unven- 
tilated room.  His  devoted  wife,  who  had  shared  his  misery  eighteen  years, 
had  just  starved  to  death,  and  lay  in  rags  by  his  side,  silent  and  cold.  An 
hour  before  he  had  begged  his  jailor,  with  outstretched  arms  of  supplication. 


Chap.  X. 


DEBTORS’  PRISONS  IN  ENGLAND. 


2QT 


to  remove  her  body  to  the  prison  burying-ground.  The  inhuman  wretch, 
who  knew  his  history,  refused  with  an  oath,  saying,  with  horrid  irony : 
“ Send  for  your  alderman’s  coach  to  take  her  to  the  Abbey  ! ” 

The  man  expired  when  he  had  finished  his  sad  story.  There  and  then, 
inspired  by  God,  Oglethorpe  conceived  a scheme  of  providing  an  asylum  for 
such  as  these  beyond  the  sea,  where  they  might  enjoy  comfort  and  happiness. 
He  also  resolved  to  bring  such  jailors  to  punishment.  The  records  of  some 
of  the  English  state  trials  show  how  earnestly  he  pursued  these  felons. 


Oglethorpe  proposed  to  plant  the  colony  of  unfortunates  in  the  unoccu- 
pied country  below  the  Savannah.  His  colleagues  readily  assented,  and  in 
his  report  to  the  House  of  Commons,  he  laid  a scheme  for  the  colony  before 
that  body.  It  promised  the  advantages  of  securing  that  domain  to  the 
British  Crown,  relieving  the  South  Carolinians  from  danger,  and  doing  good 
to  a large  class  of  worthy  British  subjects.  The  king  and  Parliament  ap- 
proved the  project.  An  appropriation  of  money  for  the  object  w’as  made, 
and  on  the  9th  of  June,  1732,  the  king  granted  a charter  for  founding  a 
colony  with  the  title  of  Georgia.  That  name  was  given  in  compliment  to 
King  George  the  Second,  then  the  ruling  monarch  of  England. 


292 


OUK  COUNTRY. 


Hook  II. 


The  management  of  the  new  settlement  was  entrusted  to  twenty-one 
“noblemen  and  gentlemen,”  who  were  constituted  “Trustees  for  Settling 
and  Establishing  the  Colony  of  Georgia.”  Colonel  Oglethorpe  was  one  of 
them.  They  were  vested  with  legislative  powers  for  the  government  of  the 
colony  for  the  space  of  twenty-one  years,  at  the  expiration  of  which  time  a 
permanent  government  was  to  be  established  by  the  king  or  his  successors 
in  accordance  with  British  law  and  usage. 

Oglethorpe  generously  offered  to  accompany  the  emigrants  and  assist 
them  in  making  their  first  settlement.  Every  feature  of  the  project  com- 
mended itself  to  the  hearts  of  the  British  people.  Donations  from  all  ranks 
and  classes  were  freely  given  to  assist  the  emigrants  in  planting  comfortable 
homes  in  the  vilden  ess.  The  Bank  of  England  made  a generous  gift ; and 
the  House  ol  Commons,  from  time  to  time,  voted  money,  amounting  in  the 
aggregate,  in  the  course  of  two  years,  to  one  hundred  and  sixty  thousand 
dollars.  Lord  Viscount  Percival  was  chosen  president  of  the  trustees,  and 
a code  of  regulations  for  the  colony,  with  agreements  and  stipulations,  was 
speedily  prepared. 

All  things  being  in  readiness,  thirty-five  families — one  hundred  and 
twenty  emigrants,  men,  women,  and  children — sailed  from  Gravesend  for 
Georgia  in  the  ship  Atine,  of  two  hundred  tons  burden,  on  the  6th  of 
November,  1732.  They  were  accompanied  by  Colonel  Oglethorpe  as  gover- 
nor, the  Rev.  Mr.  Shubert,  of  the  Church  of  England,  as  a spiritual  guide, 
and  a few  Piedmonte.se  silk-workers ; for  one  of  the  projects  of  the  trustees 
was  the  growing  of  silk  in  Georgia. 

The  Anne  arrived  at  Charleston  harbor  at  the  middle  of  January',  1733, 
where  the  emigrants  were  received  with  joy  by  the  inhabitants.  The 
Assembly  of  South  Carolina  voted  them  a large  supply  of  cattle  and  other 
provisions,  for  they'  were  regarded  as  valuable  auxiliaries.  Their  mutual  aid 
was  foreshadowed  by  the  following  lines  w’hich  appeared  in  the  Gentlctnati  s 
Magazme  : 


“ To  Carolina  be  a Georgia  joined  ! 

Then  shall  both  colonies  sure  progress  make, 
Endeared  to  either  for  the  other’s  sake  ; 
Georgia  shall  Carolina’s  protection  move, 

And  Carolina  bloom  by  Georgia’s  love.” 


The  Anne  was  piloted  from  Charleston  into  Port  Royal  Sound,  near 
Beaufort  Island,  whence  the  emigrants  were  to  be  conveyed  to  the  Savan- 
nah River  in  small  boats.  P'rom  that  point,  Oglethorpe,  accompanied  by  a 


Chap.  X. 


FOUNDER  OF  THE  COLONY  OF  GEORGIA. 


293 


guide  furnished  by  the  council  of  South  Carolina,  went  forward  to  select  a 
suitable  place  for  a settlement.  He  chose  Yamacraw  Bluff,  on  the  Savannah 
River,  about  ten  miles  from  the  sea,  where  Governor  Moore,  of  South  Caro- 
lina, had  planted  a small  tribe  of  Creek  Indians  thirty  years  before,  as 
owners  of  the  soil.  It  was  a high  plain,  its  river  front  forty  feet  above  the 
stream,  and  gently  sloping  to  the  swamps  in  the  rear.  There  he  laid  out  a 
town  and  returned  to  Beaufort,  where  the  emigrants  had  landed,  to  conduct 
them  to  their  final  destination.  They  all  arrived  there  on  the  first  of  Feb- 
ruary, and  slept  in  tents  that  night. 

The  South  Carolinians  had  sent  boats  with  the  additional  provisions,  and 
a body  of  rangers  for  the  protection  of  the  colonists  while  the  latter  should 
build  cabins  and  a fort  for  their  defence.  The  town  projected  by  the  governor 
was  named  Savannah,  and  there  the  emigrants  soon  had  comfortable  dwell- 
ings and  a formidable  military  work  armed  with  cannons.  Concerning  this 
spot,  Oglethorpe  wrote  to  the  trustees : 

“Upon  the  river  side,  at  the  centre  of  this  plain,  I have  laid  out  a town, 
opposite  to  which  is  an  island  [Hutchinson’s  Island]  of  very  rich  pasturage, 
which  I think  should  be  kept  for  the  trustees’  cattle.  The  river  is  pretty 
wide,  the  water  fresh,  and  from  the  key  of  the  town  you  see  its  whole  course 
to  the  sea,  with  the  island  of  Tybee,  which  forms  the  mouth  of  the  river. 
For  about  six  miles  up  into  the  country  the  landscape  is  very  agreeable,  the 
stream  being  wide  and  bordered  with  high  woods  on  both  sides.” 

Before  their  departure  from  England,  the  colonists  had  received  some 
military  training  from  the  sergeants  of  the  guards,  in  London.  Oglethorpe 
now  formed  them  into  a company  of  militia  with  officers  ; and  he  frequently 
exercised  them  that  the  Indians  might  be  impressed  with  their  military  skill. 
The  fort  was  soon  completed  and  cannon  mounted  upon  it.  Then  the  gov- 
ernor turned  his  earnest  attention  to  the  important  business  of  establishing 
friendly  relations  with  the  Indians.  He  was  within  territory  claimed  by  the 
powerful  Creek  Confederacy,  and  not  far  from  the  seat  of  a tribe  composed 
partly  of  Yamacraws  and  partly  of  Yamasees  or  Savannahs,  over  whom  pre- 
sided To-mo-chi-chi,  a venerable  chief.  He  had  suffered  banishment  at  the 
hands  of  his  people,  the  Lower  Creeks,  but  for  what  cause  is  unknown.  He 
was  then  ninety-one  years  of  age,  of  commanding  person  and  grave  de- 
meanor. His  power  over  his  immediate  followers  was  supreme,  and  his 
name  had  great  weight  throughout  the  Confederacy  as  a renowned  warrior 
and  wise  sachem.  Oglethorpe  therefore  sought  an  early  interview  with  To- 
mo-chi-chi.  It  was  held  under  the  tall  pines  and  wide-spreading  live-oaks 
that  covered  Yamacraw  Bluff,  with  Mary  Musgrove,  the  half-breed  Creek 
wife  of  a South  Carolina  trader,  then  at  Savannah,  as  interpreter. 


294 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  II. 


That  interview  was  very  satisfactory.  To-mo-chi-clii  pledged  his  un- 
wavering friendship  for  the  English,  and  assisted  Oglethorpe  in  making 
arrangements  for  a general  convention  of  the  heads  of  the  Confederacy. 
That  convention  assembled  in  one  of  the  large  houses  at  Savannah,  late  in 
May,  1733,  and  was  attended  by  fifty  chiefs  representing  eight  tribes  of  the 
Creek  Nation. 

Oglethorpe  addressed  the  assembled  chiefs.  He  told  them  of  the  great 
power,  wealth  and  wisdom  of  the  English  people,  and  of  the  advantages  the 
Indians  might  derive  by  the  cultivation  of  friendly  relations  between  the 
two  races.  He  expressed  a hope  that  as  the  Indians  had  a superabundance 


of  land,  they  would  freely  resign  a portion  of  it  to  those  who  had  come  over 
the  sea  for  their  instruction  and  benefit.  When  the  governor  ceased  speak- 
ing, the  venerable  To-mo-chi-chi  arose  and,  in  behalf  of  the  Creek  warriors 
present,  he  gave  their  cordial  assent  to  Oglethorpe’s  proposition.  “ I was  a 
banished  man,”  he  said.  “ I came  here,  poor  and  helpless,  to  look  for  good 
lands  near  the  tombs  of  my  ancestors,  and  the  trustees  sent  people  here.  I 
feared  you  would  drive  us  away,  for  we  were  weak  and  w'anted  corn  ; but 
you  confirmed  our  land  to  us,  gave  us  food  and  instructed  our  children.” 
After  further  declaring  the  goodness  of  the  English  and  expressing  thanks, 
To-mo-chi-chi  said,  as  he  gave  a buffalo-skin  to  the  governor,  on  the  inside 
of  which  were  delineated  the  head  and  feathers  of  an  eagle  ; “ Here  is  a little 
present.  I give  you  the  skin  of  a buffalo  adorned  with  the  head  and  feathers 


Chap.  X. 


TREATY  WITH  THE  CREEK  INDIANS. 


295 

of  an  eagle,  which  I desire  you  to  accept,  because  the  eagle  is  an  emblem  of 
speed  and  the  buffalo  of  strength.  The  English  are  as  swift  as  the  bird  and 
as  strong  as  the  beast ; since  like  the  former,  they  flew  over  vast  seas  to  the 
uttermost  parts  of  the  earth  ; and  like  the  latter,  they  are  so  strong  that 
nothing  can  withstand  them.  The  feathers  of  the  eagle  are  soft,  and  signify 
love ; the  buffalo’s  skin  is  warm,  and  signifies  protection ; therefore  I hope 
the  English  will  love  and  protect  our  little  families.” 

A satisfactory  treaty  was  made  by  which  all  unoccupied  lands  within 
defined  boundaries  were  assigned  to  the  English.  This  treaty  was  ratified 
by  the  trustees  on  the  i8th  of  October,  1733,  when  the  English  obtained 
sovereignty  over  the  domain  between  the  Savannah  and  Alatamaha 
rivers,  westward  from  the  Atlantic  to  the  extent  of  tide-water,  and  all 
the  islands  but  three  from  Tybee  to  St.  Simons.  Unfortunately  the 
Indians  were  allowed  to  reserve  for  their  use  in  hunting,  bathing  and  fish- 
ing the  islands  of  Ossabaw,  Sapela  and  St.  Catharines,  which  were  within 
the  limits  of  the  English  domain.  This  reservation  was  a source  of  trouble 
afterwards. 

At  the  conclusion  of  the  treaty,  To-mo-chi-chi  invited  the  members  of 
the  convention  to  his  own  town  near  by,  where  they  spent  the  night  in  feast- 
ing and  dancing.  The  treaty  was  signed  on  the  21st,  when  the  governor 
distributed  the  following  presents  among  the  Indians ; A laced  coat  and  a 
laced  hat  and  shirt  to  each  of  the  chiefs ; to  each  of  the  warriors,  a gun  and 
a mantle  of  duffils  (a  coarse  woolen  cloth  with  nap  and  fringe),  and  to  all 
their  attendants  coarse  cloth  for  clothing ; a barrel  of  gunpowder ; four  kegs 
of  bullets;  apiece  of  broadcloth;  a piece  of  Irish  linen;  a cask  of  tobacco 
pipes ; eight  belts  and  cutlasses  with  gilt  handles ; tape,  and  of  all  colors ; 
eight  kegs  of  rum  to  be  carried  home  to  their  towns ; one  pound  of  powder, 
one  pound  of  bullets,  and  as  much  provision  for  each  one  as  they  pleased  to 
take  for  their  journey  home.  Rum  appears  to  have  been  freely  used  at  first 
in  Georgia.  In  the  minutes  of  the  trustees,  under  date  of  August  ii,  1733, 
is  the  following  record  ; “ Read  a letter  from  Mr.  Oglethorpe  with  an  account 
of  the  death  of  several  persons  in  Georgia,  which  he  imputed  to  the  drinking 
of  ruin.  Resolved,  That  the  drinking  of  rum  in  Georgia  be  absolutely  pro- 
hibited, and  that  all  which  be  brought  there  be  staved.”  This  was  a short 
but  pretty  effectual  prohibitory  law. 

In  the  spring  of  1734,  Oglethorpe  went  to  England,  leaving  the  colony 
in  the  care  of  others.  Believing  that  a sight  of  England,  its  inhabitants 
and  evidences  of  its  power,  by  some  of  the  Indians,  would  increase  the 
reverence  of  the  savages  for  Englishmen  and  add  strength  and  permanence 
to  the  colony,  he  invited  To-mo-chi-chi  and  some  of  his  friends  to  go  with 


20 


296 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  11. 


him.  The  invitation  wa.s  accepted,  and  the  old  Creek  monarch  with  his 


queen,  See-naw-ki ; their  adopted 


son  and  nephew,  Too-na-ho-wi  and  five 
chiefs,  went  on  the  voyage.  The  ves- 
sel reached  England  in  June,  when 
Oglethorpe  sent  a letter  to  his  friend. 
Sir  John  Phillips,  in  which  he  spoke  of 
To-mo-chi-chi  as  an  aged  chief,  “ the 
mico  or  king  of  Yamacraw,  a man  of  an 
excellent  understanding,  so  desirous  of 
hearing  the  young  people  taught  the 
English  language  and  religion,  that,  not- 
withstanding his  advanced  age,  he  has 
come  over  with  me  to  obtain  means  and 
assistant  teachers.  He  has  brought 
with  him  a young  man  whom  he  calls 
his  nephew  and  next  heir,  and  who  has 
already  learned  the  Lord’s  prayer  in  the 
English  and  the  Indian  language.”  The 
reception  of  the  governor  and  his  dusky 
friends  was  cordial.  The  Indians  were 
objects  of  great  curiosity,  none  having 
been  seen  in  England  since  Schuyler 
took  some  Mohawk  kings  to  the  court 
of  Queen  Anne.  To-mo-chi-chi  was 
made  the  subject  of  an  ode  of  eleven 
stanzas  of  ten  lines  each,  the  first  of 
which  was  as  follows  : 


“ What  stranger  this?  and  from  what  region  far? 

This  wondrous  form,  majestic  to  behold  ? 

Uncloath’d  but  arm’d  offensive  for  the  war. 

In  hoary  age  and  wise  experience  old  ? 

His  limbs  inured  to  hardiness  and  toil, 

His  strong  large  limbs  what  mighty  sinews  brace! 
Whilst  truth  sincere  and  artless  virtue  smile 
In  the  expressive  features  of  his  face. 

His  bold,  free  aspect  speaks  the  inward  mind. 

Arm’d  by  no  slavish  fear,  from  no  vile  passion  blind.” 


On  the  first  of  August  the  Indians  were  conveyed  in  three  of  the  royal 
coaches,  each  drawn  by  six  horses,  to  Kensington  palace,  to  have  an  inter- 
view with  the  king.  They  had  been  dressed  at  the  office  of  the  trustees  in 


Chap.  X. 


CREEK  INDIANS  IN  ENGLAND. 


297 


English  costume.  To-mo-chi-chi  and  his  queen  in  scarlet  and  gold.  The 
chiefs,  less  gorgeously  attired,  had  their  faces  painted  according  to  their 
home-custom.  They  were  received  at  the  door  of  the  palace  by  the  royal 
body-guard  and  conducted  to  the  presence  of  the  king  and  queen,  who  were 
seated  on  thrones.  Then  To-mo-chi-chi  presented  some  eagle’s  feathers  to 
the  monarch,  and  said  : 

“This  day  I see  the  majesty  of  your  face,  the  greatness  of  your  house, 
and  the  number  of  your  people.  I am  come  for  the  good  of  the  whole 
nation  called  the  Creeks,  to  renew  the  peace  which  was  long  ago  had  with 
the  English.  I am  come  over  in  my  old  days,  although  I cannot  live  to  see 
any  advantage  to  myself.  I am  come  for  the  good  of  the  children  of  all  the 
nations  of  the  Upper  and  Lower  Creeks,  that  they  may  be  instructed  in  the 
knowledge  of  the  English. 

“ These  are  the  feathers  of  the  eagle  which  is  the  swiftest  of  birds,  and 
who  flieth  all  around  our  nations.  These  feathers  are  a sign  of  peace  in  our 
land,  and  have  been  carried  from  town  to  town  there ; and  we  have  brought 
them  over  to  leave  with  you,  O great  king!  as  a sign  of  everlasting  peace. 
O great  king!  whatsoever  words  you  shall  say  to  me,  I will  tell  them  faith- 
fully to  all  the  kings  of  the  Creek  nations.” 

The  sovereign  gave  a gracious  answer  to  this  speech,  assuring  the  old 
chief  that  he  and  his  people  might  rely  upon  the  friendship  of  the  English. 
Then  they  withdrew.  A cloud  was  upon  their  spirits.  One  of  the  chiefs,  a 
brother  of  queen  See-naw-ki,  w'as  very  sick  wdth  the  small-pox.  He  soon 
died,  and  was  buried  with  the  custom  of  his  country  as  nearly  as  possible. 
Then  Oglethorpe  took  the  whole  party  to  his  estate,  w'here  they  bewailed 
their  loss  for  several  days.  After  remaining  four  months  in  England,  and 
becoming  deeply  impressed  with  the  greatness  of  the  English  people,  To- 
mo-chi-chi  and  his  company  returned  to  Georgia,  in  the  company  of  a con- 
siderable number  of  new  emigrants.  The  Indians  were  conveyed  to  the 
ship  at  Gravesend,  in  the  royal  coaches,  bearing  wdth  them  presents  valued 
at  two  thousand  dollars.  The  Prince  of  Wales  had  given  to  To-mo-chi-chi’s 
heir  a gold  watch,  with  an  injunction  to  call  upon  Jesus  Christ  every  morn- 
ing, when  he  looked  on  it.  They  reached  Savannah  late  in  December,  1734. 
Among  the  emigrants  was  an  English  baronet  (Francis  Parkhurst)  and  his 
family,  and  fifty-six  Saltzburghers  newly  arrived  from  Rotterdam. 

Oglethorpe  did  not  return  to  Georgia  until  the  beginning  of  1736,  w'hen 
he  was  received  with  joy  by  the  colonists  and  the  Indians.  He  took  with 
him  several  cannon  and  about  one  hundred  and  fifty  Scotch  Highlanders, 
well  skilled  in  the  military  art,  who  constituted  the  first  army  in  Georgia 
during  its  early  struggles.  With  him  also  came  the  Rev.  John  Wesley,  the 


298 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  II. 


founder  of  the  Methodist  Church,  and  his  brother  Charles,  who  came  to 
preach  the  gospel  to  the  heathen.  To  Mr.  Wesley,  To-mo-chi-chi  remarked: 

“ I am  glad  you  are  come.  When  I was  in  England,  I desired  that  some 
one  would  speak  the  great  zvord  to  me.  I will  go  up  and  speak  to  the  wise 
men  of  my  nation,  and  hope  they  will  hear.  But  we  would  not  be  made 
Christians  as  the  Spaniards  make  Christians ; we  would  be  taught  before  we 
are  baptized.” 

With  a population  of  more  than  five  hundred  souls  ; with  a military 
force,  and  with  means  for  religious  instruction,  ihe  foundations  of  the  colony 
of  Georgia  were  now  firmly  laid.  And  had  the  wisdom  of  the  trustees  been 
equal  to  their  benevolence,  immediate  and  great  prosperity  would  have  been 
visible.  But  they  bound  the  colonists  by  such  unwise  rules  and  regulations 
that  their  energies  were  cramped,  and  it  seemed,  at  one  time,  as  if  the  grand 
object  of  the  trustees,  and  the  hopes  of  Englishmen,  would  be  frustrated. 

We  have  now  considered  the  more  prominent  events  in  the  history  of  the 
planting  of  settlements  in  America,  and  the  development  of  many  of  them 
into  permanent  colonies.  The  ingredients  of  the  story  are  highly  pic- 
turesque. The  simple  outline  picture,  when  drawn  from  nature  with  fidelity, 
possesses  marvellous  interest  to  the  student  of  human  nature.  The  imagi- 
nation may  not  conceive  incidents  more  romantic  than  those  which  sober 
truth  reveals  in  the  career  of  men  and  women  who  came  from  Europe  to 
explore  and  make  homes  in  the  wilds  of  America.  Nearly  all  of  them  were 
impelled  to  the  undertaking  by  those  powerful  motives  of  human  action, — 
avarice,  ambition  or  the  love  of  liberty.  In  all  of  the  earlier  adventurers 
and  settlers,  we  see  these  passions  dominating  all  others.  The  discoverers 
stand  out  on  the  page  of  history  as  grand  heroes,  worthy  of  a representation 
on  the  shield  of  Achilles.  In  the  delineation  of  their  deeds  and  of  those  of 
their  followers  who  occupied  what  they  discovered,  faith,  hope,  courage,  ‘ 
hardihood,  fortitude,  indomitable  perseverance  and  untiring  energy,  are 
prominent  features  in  the  picture.  These  were  the  necessary  elements  of 
success  in  the  wide  and  wild  fields  of  adventure,  and  were  ever  present  in 
great  abundance  when  required  in  laying  the  foundations  of  our  Republic. 

We  will  now  consider  the  processes  by  which  small  settlements  grew  into 
great  commonwealths  in  the  form  of  British-American  colonies. 


END  OF  BOOK  II. 


BOOK  III. 


COLONIES 


FROM  1733  TO  1763. 


I 


il 

I 

I 


CHAPTER  I. 


THE  VIRGINIA  COLONISTS — INTRODUCTION  OF  SLAVES  FROM  AFRICA — YOUNG  WOMEN  SENT  TO 
VIRGINIA — FAMILIES  AND  SCHOOLS  ESTABLISHED  THERE — CONSTITUTION  OF  VIRGINIA — BETTER 
PROSPECTS  — MASSACRE  BY  INDIANS  — RETALIATION  — PESTILENCE  — THE  NEW  BRITISH  MON- 
ARCH— AN  UNPOPULAR  GOVERNMENT  DEPOSED  — SIR  WILLIAM  BERKELEY — ANOTHER  MAS- 
SACRE BY  THE  INDIANS— DEATH  OF  THE  INDIAN  EMPEROR — END  OF  THE  CONFEDERACY — 
BERKELEY  AND  ROYALTY — THE  “ OLD  DOMINION.” 


I 


I 


E have  observed  that  in  Virginia  was  first 
established  a permanent  English  colony  in 
our  country,  when,  in  1619,  Governor  Yeard- 
ley  organized  representative  government 
there,  and  so  laid  the  foundations  of  a com- 
monwealth. The  tribe  of  gold-seekers  had 
disappeared  forever ; but  the  unwholesome 
influences  of  a tribe  of  felons  from  the 
prisons  of  England,  which  the  king  had 
J ordered  to  be  sent  to  Virginia — a hun- 
dred in  number — was  yet  felt  in  the 
scandal  it  had  brought  upon  the  colony, 
ana  in  their  demoralizing  example. 
Captain  Smith  declared  that  they  gave 


302 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  111. 


Virginia  such  a bad  reputation,  “ that  some  did  choose  to  be  hanged  ere  they 
would  go  thither,  and  were.” 

Another  element  was  introduced  into  Virginia  society  in  1619,  which 
had  a powerful  influence  over  the  destinies,  not  only  of  that  colony,  but  of 
the  nation  of  which  it  afterward  formed  a part.  Just  at  sunset,  on  a hot 
evening  in  August,  a Dutch  trading  vessel  arrived  from  the  coast  of  Guinea 
with  a strange  cargo  of  living  creatures  for  sale.  They  were  black  men  and 
women  who  had  been  stolen  from  their  homes  on  that  coast  and  destined  for 
slaves.  The  planters  had  heard  of  the  capacity  of  Africans  for  enduring  labor 
in  warm  regions,  and  they  purchased  twenty  of  them — fourteen  men  and  six 
women.  They  found  them  to  be  good  workers  and  very  docile.  Others  were 
imported ; and  so  was  begun  the  system  of  negro  slavery  in  our  country — 
a stain  which  was  washed  out  with  blood  almost  two  centuries  and  a half 
afterwards,  when  the  servile  race  numbered  about  four  million. 

At  about  the  same  time  another  element  was  introduced  into  Virginia 
society,  which  exerted  a most  healthful  and  beneficent  influence  over  the 
colony.  The  wise  Sir  Edwin  Sandys,  who  had  lately  been  appointed  treas- 
urer of  the  London  Company,  had,  for  the  purpose  of  effecting  a reform, 
entered  upon  a thorough  and  fearless  investigation  of  the  abuses  which  had 
attended  the  colonization  of  Virginia,  and  retarded  its  progress.  It  was 
then  tw’elve  years  since  the  first  emigrants  landed  at  Jamestown.  A large 
amount  of  money  had  been  spent  in  sending  persons  to  people  the  region, 
and  yet  there  were  only  about  six  hundred  Europeans  there  when  Sandys 
entered  upon  his  duties.  He  pursued  his  purpose  with  zeal,  and  very  soon 
he  purged  Virginia  of  its  bad  name.  His  reputation  for  candor  and  other 
virtues  were  so  well  known,  that  within  the  space  of  one  year  he  persuaded 
more  than  twelve  hundred  emigrants  to  go  to  the  James  River.  He  had 
patriotic  colleagues  in  the  Board,  and  they  effected  a wonderful  change  in 
the  fortunes  of  the  colony. 

The  English  settlers,  more  delicate  in  their  tastes  and  habits  than  the 
French  and  Portuguese,  would  not  marry  the  Indian  women,  and  very  few 
English  women  had  ventured  to  cross  the  Atlantic.  Therefore  the  planters  of 
Virginia  had  not  the  comforts  and  sacred  connections  of  married  life.  Few 
of  them  expected  to  remain  in  the  colony.  Most  of  them  looked  for  a return 
to  England  when  they  should  acquire  a competency.  They  were  unsettled, 
and  unfitted  for  patient  industry.  The  sagacious  Sandys  clearly  perceived 
their  needs  and  the  remedy.  He  proposed  to  send  over  to  Virginia  one 
hundred  virtuous  and  attractive  young  English  women  from  the  middle  class 
in  society,  to  become  wives  for  the  planters,  the  cost  of  the  transportation 
of  each  to  be  paid  by  the  husband  who  should  choose  her. 


Chap.  I. 


YOUNG  ENGLISH  WOMEN  IN  VIRGINIA. 


303 


The  scheme  involved  a half-social,  half-commercial  speculation.  It  was 
tried  and  succeeded.  Ninety  young  women  of  the  class  named  were  induced 
to  go  to  Virginia  early  in  1620.  When  they  arrived  at  Jamestown,  they 
were  landed  from  the  ship  in  small  boats.  The  shore  was  covered  by  young 
planters  who  came  to  see  the  disembarkation  of  the  novel  and  precious 
cargo.  Led  by  the  rector  of  the  parish,  these  maidens  walked  in  procession 
to  the  church,  where  thanksgivings  were  offered  to  their  Maker  for  their  pre- 
servation from  the  perils  of  the  sea.  The  church  was  crowded  ; and  within 


INTRODUCTION  OF  NEGRO  SLAVERY  INTO  VIRGINIA. 


the  space  of  a few  days,  every  maiden  was  wooed  and  won  by  the  young 
planters.  “ Love  at  first  sight  ” was  the  rule.  Several  nuptials  occurred  in 
the  church  at  the  same  time.  According  to  cotemporary  witnesses,  the 
seeming  indelicacy  of  the  transaction  was  qualified  by  the  true  affection 
which  prevailed  among  the  married  couples,  most  of  them  being  happily 
mated.  The  young  matrons  sent  word  home  for  other  maidens  to  come. 


304 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  111. 


and  sixty  more,  “young  and  handsome,”  arrived  at  Jamestown  the  next 
year.  Others  followed. 

The  price  of  a wife  was  at  first  fixed  at  one  hundred  and  twenty  pounds 
of  tobacco,  then  the  currency  of  the  colony.  The  money  value  was  about 
ninety  dollars.  It  finally  arose  to  one  hundred  and  fifty  dollars.  A debt 
incurred  for  a wife  was  regarded  as  a “ confidential  ” one.  It  took  prece- 
dence of  all  others.  To  encourage  wedding,  the  Company  gave  preference 
to  married  men  in  conferring  employments.  The  salutary  effects  of  the 
scheme  and  of  this  policy  were  soon  visible  in  the  colony.  Homes — fire- 
sides— family  altars — the  purest  and  strongest  elements  in  the  foundations 
of  a virtuous  and  prosperous  state,  were  established.  Domestic  ties  so 
created,  promoted  personal  virtue  and  habits  of  thrift.  Men  no  longer 
talked  of  returning  to  England,  but  called  Virginia  their  home.  Emigration 
rapidly  swelled  the  population,  and  before  the  close  of  1621,  fifty  patents  had 
been  granted  for  land,  and  there  were  three  thousand  five  hundred  inhabi- 
tants of  European  blood  in  Virginia.  Settlements  had  been  already  made 
so  remote  from  the  capital  as  the  Falls  of  the  James  River,  where  Richmond 
now  stands.  Below  there,  at  what  is  known  as  Dutch  Gap  (so  called  because 
Germans  were  employed  to  cut  a new  channel  for  the  river  across  a narrow 
isthmus  there),  a town  had  been  founded  which  was  named  Henricopolis, 
and  there  a church  had  been  built  and  a grammar-school  established  for  the 
education  of  Indian  children.  When  the  school  was  endowed  with  money 
and  thousands  of  acres  of  land,  the  dignified  title  of  The  University  of 
Henrico  was  given  to  it.  The  church,  the  college  and  the  town  have  long 
ago  crumbled  into  ruins,  which  no  longer  attract  the  eye  of  the  curious  or 
the  scrutiny  of  the  antiquary. 

The  blessings  of  marriage  created  the  necessity  for  making  provision  for 
the  education  of  children.  English  Bishops  and  other  philanthropists  col- 
lected money  for  the  purpose.  The  colonists  bore  a share  of  the  burden. 
Other  schools  beside  that  of  Henrico  were  established  in  which  Indian 
children  were  also  taught.  Finally,  in  the  reign  of  William  and  Mary,  more 
than  seventy  years  after  the  emigration  of  the  maidens,  a college  was  estab- 
lished at  Williamsburg,  the  new  capital  of  Virginia,  which  still  flourishes,  and 
yet  bears  the  names  of  those  sovereigns. 

In  tjie  year  1621,  the  London  Company  granted  a written  constitution  to 
the  Virginia  colonists,  modelled  after  that  of  England,  but  exceedingly 
simple ; the  Pilgrims  in  the  May-Floiucr,  more  democratic,  gave  to  them- 
selves a written  constitution  at  about  the  same  time,  fashioned  to  meet  the 
circumstances  of  their  case,  and  still  more  simple.  A century  and  a half 
afterward,  as  we  shall  discover,  the  inhabitants  of  these  two  colonies,  then 


Chap.  I. 


NEW  FORM  OF  GOVERNMENT  IN  VIRGINIA. 


305 


founded,  were  leaders  in  the  great  struggle  for  that  political  independence 
which  these  early  constitutions  foreshadowed.  The  Virginia  constitution 
provided  for  a governor  and  council  to  be  appointed  by  the  Company,  and  a 
popular  legislative  body  to  be  chosen  by  the  people,  and  called  the  House 
of  Burgesses.  Each  settlement  was  allowed  two  burgesses,  and  these,  with 
the  governor  and  council,  composed  the  General  Assembly.  That  Assembly 
exercised  full  legislative  power,  but  none  of  its  acts  were  valid  until  they 
received  the  sanction  of  the  Company  in  London.  With  unexampled 
justice,  it  was  also  provided  that  no  orders  from  the  Company  should  be 
binding  on  the  colonists,  unless  they  should  be,  in  like  manner,  ratified  by 
the  General  Assembly.  This  was  the  work  of  the  Earl  of  Southampton  (the 
bosom  friend  of  Shakespeare),  Sir  Edwin  Sandys  and  the  patriotic  party  in 
England,  who  were  careful  to  imbue  public  life  in  Virginia  with  the  prin- 
ciples of  popular  freedom.  It  was  at  the  dawn  of  that  eventful  day  of  politi- 
cal disputes  in  England  which  resulted  in  the  beheading  of  her  king  and  the 
abolition  of  monarchy  for  a season. 

When  Sir  Francis  Wyatt  came  to  Virginia,  bringing  with  him  the  new 
constitution,  he  was  pleased  with  the  aspect  of  everything  around  him  ; and 
the  colonists  rejoiced  in  the  prospect  of  long  years  of  peace  and  prosperity 
before  them.  The  atmosphere  of  their  daily  life  appeared  perfectly  serene. 
There  was  no  cloud  in  the  firmament.  But  at  that  moment  a fearful  tempest 
was  brooding,  in  restraint,  in  the  forests  around  them.  Powhatan,  the  friend 
of  the  English,  was  dead,  and  his  younger  brother,  the  subtle,  treacherous 
and  truly  savage  Opechancanough  (the  captor  of  Smith  in  the  forest),  was 
then  wielding  the  sceptre  of  his  empire.  He  could  command  fifteen  hun- 
dred warriors  to  do  his  bidding.  He  hated  the  English  intensely,  and 
inspired  his  followers  with  the  same  passion  ; yet  he  feigned  the  warmest 
friendship  for  them,  and  deceived  them  with  Satanic  smiles.  He  believed 
that  the  English  intended  to  seize  the  lands  of  his  empire  and  exterminate 
his  race,  and  his  patriotism  impelled  him  to  strike  a blow  for  his  country 
and  countrymen. 

Opechancanough  used  various  arts  to  inflame  the  anger  of  the  Indians 
against  the  English.  He  had  a rival  in  the  admiration  of  his  people,  who 
had  shown  himself  to  be  a bitter  enemy  of  the  colonists.  For  the  double 
purpose  of  ridding  himself  of  this  rival  and  exciting  the  anger  of  his  nation 
against  the  English,  the  emperor  sent  word  to  Governor  Wyatt  that  he  gave 
him  liberty  to  cut  that  man’s  throat.  Such  an  act  would  surely  have  aroused 
the  savages  into  furious  war.  It  was  not  done ; but,  unfortunately,  in  an 
affray  with  a settler,  the  man  was  shot.  • The  wily  emperor  pretended  to 
bewail  his  loss,  and  so  he  fired  the  resentment  of  the  Indians  against  the 


3o6 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Hook  111. 


English.  Then  he  went  secretly  to  the  governor,  half-clad  in  skins,  his  head 
plumed  with  eagle’s  feathers,  and  bearing  in  his  belt  a finely-wrought 
hatchet.  After  making  warm  professions  of  friendship,  he  demanded  in 
a haughty  tone,  some  concessions  to  his  incensed  people.  His  demand  was 
refused,  and  forgetting  himself  for  a moment,  he  snatched  the  hatchet  from 
his  belt  and  struck  its  keen  blade  into  a log  of  the  cabin,  uttering  a curse 


THE  ANGER  OF  OPECHANCANOUGH. 


upon  the  English.  His  words  fell  like  a fearful  revelation  upon  the  mind  of 
the  governor.  Instantly  recovering  himself,  the  savage  smiled,  and  said 
blandly:  “ Pardon  me,  governor;  I was  thinking  of  that  wicked  Englishman 
[Argali]  who  stole  my  niece  [Pocahontas],  and  struck  me  with  his  sword.  I 
love  the  English  who  are  the  friends  of  the  family  of  Powhatan.  Sooner 
will  the  skies  fall  than  my  bond  of  friendship  with  the  English  shall  be  dis- 
solved.” 

Sir  Francis  warned  his  people  that  there  was  treachery  abroad.  They 


Chap.  I. 


MASSACRE  BY  THE  INDIANS. 


307 


were  slow  to  believe  it.  There  had  never  been  a war  with  the  Indians. 
Their  settlements  were  scattered — some  of  them  in  solitary  places — and  yet 
no  one  had  ever  been  disturbed  by  the  savages  since  the  happy  marriage  of 
Pocahontas.  So  secure  had  they  felt,  that  they  had  broken  a law  which 
forbade  the  teaching  of  the  use  of  fire-arms  to  the  Indians,  and  had  em- 
ployed them  to  hunt  with  the  musket.  In  the  midst  of  this  calm  of  con- 
fidence, the  tempest  suddenly  burst  upon  the  colony.  At  mid-day,  on  the 
1st  of  April  [the  22d  March,  old  style],  1622,  the  Indians  rushed  from  the 
forests  upon  all  of  the  remote  settlements  at  a pre-concerted  time,  and  in 
the  space  of  an  hour  three  hundred  and  fifty  men,  women  and  children  were 
slain.  Even  the  devoted  missionary  at  Henrico,  who  had  instructed  the 
children  of  the  savages  and  tenderly  nursed  the  young  and  old  in  sickness, 
was  not  spared.  Among  the  victims  were  six  members  of  the  council  and 
several  of  the  wealthier  inhabitants.  On  the  very  morning  of  the  massacre, 
the  treacherous  savages  were  in  the  houses  and  at  the  tables  of  those  whom 
they  intended  to  murder  at  noon. 

The  people  at  Jamestown  were  saved  by  Chanco,  a Christian  Indian,  who 
heard  of  the  conspiracy  in  the  evening  before  the  massacre.  He  hastened 
to  Jamestown  to  warn  a friend  of  impending  danger.  The  alarm  spread, 
but  it  was  too  late  to  reach  the  more  remote  settlements.  The  people  at 
Jamestown  were  prepared  to  meet  the  assassins,  and  so  averted  the  blow 
which  might  have  extinguished  the  colony.  Those  at  a distance,  who  sur- 
vived the  carnage,  beat  back  the  savages  and  then  fled  to  Jamestown.  In 
the  course  of  a few  days,  eighty  inhabited  plantations  were  reduced  to  eight. 
But  a large  part  of  the  colony  was  saved. 

The  people  thus  gathered  at  Jamestown  by  a terrible  necessity  prepared 
for  vengeance.  A vindictive  and  exterminating  war  was  immediately  waged. 
Every  man  capable  of  bearing  arms  appeared  in  the  field,  and  fearful  retali- 
ating blows  were  given.  The  English  spread  death  and  desolation  over  the 
peninsula  between  the  York  and  James  rivers.  The  Indians  were  slaugh- 
tered by  scores,  or  driven  far  back  into  the  wilderness.  Opechancanough 
fled  for  his  life  to  the  land  of  the  Pamunkeys,  and  lost  much  of  his  influence 
by  a show  of  cowardice.  His  power  was  broken,  and  the  strength  of  his 
people  had  departed.  Before  the  war,  there  were  about  six  thousand  Indians 
within  sixty  miles  of  Jamestown,  occupying  a domain  eight  thousand  square 
miles  in  extent ; at  the  close  of  the  war,  there  were  probably  not  a thousand 
within  that  territory. 

The  blight  of  war,  pestilence  and  famine  fell  upon  the  colony.  Sickness 
prevailed  among  the  people,  who  were  gathered  into  a narrow  space  for 
mutual  protection.  Large  areas  of  land  were  left  uncultivated  ; and  many 


3o8 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  III. 


of  the  settlers,  discouraged  and  terrified,  returned  to  England.  The  colony 
of  almost  four  thousand  souls  was  soon  reduced  to  twenty-five  hundred ; 
and  these  never  retired  at  night  with  an  assurance  that  they  would  not  hear 
the  savage  war-whoop  before  the  dawn. 

The  sufferings  of  the  colonists  excited  the  liveliest  sympathy  in  England. 
Ships  were  sent  with  supplies.  The  mean  king  made  it  the  occasion  for  a 
false  show  of  generosity.  He  sent  to  the  colonists  a number  of  guns  from 
the  Tower  of  London,  which  had  been  cast  aside  as  useless  in  Europe. 
“ They  may  serve  the  people,”  said  the  king,  “ against  ignorant  and  naked 
heathen  salvages.”  The  generous  Captain  Smith,  deeply  interested  in  the 
fate  of  the  colony  he  had  helped  to  found,  offered  his  services  to  the  Company 
to  lead  an  expedition  to  overawe  the  Indians  and  to  protect  the  people.  Some 
of  the  Company,  moved  by  inordinate  greed  more  than  by  compassion  for 
the  colonists,  offered  to  give  Smith  permission  to  lead  an  expedition  at  his 
own  expense,  provided  he  would  give  the  Company  one-half  the  plunder. 

The  meddlesome  King  James,  finding  a majority  of  the  London  Com- 
pany surely  drifting  toward  republicanism,  and  disliking  the  freedom  of 
debate  in  the  General  Assembly  of  Virginia,  resolved  to  control  the  Com- 
pany and  the  colony.  “ The  Virginia  House  of  Burgesses,”  said  Gondamar, 
the  Spanish  envoy  at  the  English  court,  “ is  but  a seminary  to  a seditious 
Parliament.”  The  king  believed  it ; and  at  the  election  of  officers  for  the 
Company  in  1622,  he  tried  to  control  the  choice  of  candidates.  He  failed. 
Then  he  determined  to  deprive  the  Company  of  their  charter,  and,  by  taking 
control  of  the  affairs  of  the  corporation,  regain  what  he  had  lost  by  granting 
them  the  liberal  third  charter.  He  sent  a commission  to  Virginia,  composed 
of  his  pliable  instruments,  to  inquire  into  the  affairs  of  the  colony.  They 
tried  to  coax  and  frighten  the  House  of  Burgesses  into  a relinquishment  of 
the  rights  guaranteed  to  them  by  the  terms  of  the  charter.  Finding  these 
representatives  of  the  people  firm  in  support  of  their  liberties,  the  commis- 
sioners recommended  a dissolution  of  the  charter.  A pliant  judiciary 
assisted  the  king  in  the  measure,  and  in  July,  1624,  the  patent  was  cancelled 
and  Virginia  became  a royal  province  again.  No  material  change  was  made 
in  the  domestic  affairs  of  the  colony.  The  monarch  appointed  Sir  P'rancis 
Wyatt  governor,  with  twelve  councillors  of  state,  but  wisely  refrained  from 
interfering  with  the  House  of  Burgesses.  He  boasted  that  he  would  make 
the  colony  more  prosperous  than  ever,  but  he  died  soon  afterward,  and  was 
succeeded  by  his  son,  Charles  the  First,  on  the  6th  of  April,  1625. 

King  Charles  was  a thorough  disciple  of  his  father  in  the  science  of  what 
James  was  pleased  to  call  kingcraft,  the  prime  elements  of  which,  as  he 
exhibited  it,  were  lying  and  deception.  He  was  also  as  bigoted  as  his  father 


Chap.  I. 


CHARLES  THE  FIRST  AND  HIS  QUEEN. 


309 


in  his  belief  in  the  doctrine  of  the  divine  right  of  kings  to  govern  the  people 
absolutely,  and  the  sacredness  of  the  royal  prerogative  or  the  enjoyment  of 
special  privileges  not  accorded  to  the  people.  He  was  only  twenty-five 
years  of  age  when  he  ascended  the  throne ; and  he  was  a pliant  tool  in  the 
hands  of  the  Duke  of  Buckingham,  his  father’s  base  court  favorite,  who 
assisted  in  bringing  to  England  as  the  queen  of  the  young  king,  a Roman 
Catholic  French  princess,  sister  of  the  monarch  of  France.  Three  months 
after  he  became  king,  Charles  received  the  princess  at  Dover  and  married 
her  at  Canterbury;  but  they  did  not  enter  Fondon  for  some  time  because  of 
the  ravages  of  an  epidemic  there,  by  which  over  thirty-five  thousand  per- 
sons perished. 

The  queen  brought  with 
her  a retinue  of  priests  and 
other  Roman  Catholic  at- 
tendants. The  Protestant 
sentiment  of  a majority  of 
the  English  people  was 
alarmed.  This  fact,  com- 
bined with  the  character  of 
the  king,  which  was  uni- 
formly marked  by  insin- 
cerity, deception,  falsehood 
and  treachery — the  fruits 
of  the  favorite’s  training — 
made  him  feared,  hated  and 
despised  by  the  honest  por- 
tion of  his  friends,  as  well 
as  his  foes,  and  brought 
swift  trouble  upon  himself 
and  his  country.  There  charles  the  first. 

were  causes  which  nour- 
ished opposition  to  monarchy,  and  cherished  discontents.  These  soon  led 
to  a civil  war,  the  beheading  of  the  king  and  the  abolition  of  monarchy  in 
England  for  a season.  Such  was  the  sovereign  with  whom  the  American 


colonists  had  to  deal  for  many  years,  while  England  was  in  a state  of  tran- 
sition from  absolutism  or  the  unbridled  rule  of  the  monarch,  to  constitutional 
liberty  or  the  enjoyment  of  rights  guaranteed  to  the  people  by  a constitution 
respected  by  the  sovereign  because  his  subjects  have  the  power  to  enforce  it. 
It  was  a state  which  Charles  would  not  comprehend  ; and  his  stupid  obstinacy 
plunged  his  country  into  war  with  itself,  and  also  with  France  and  Spain. 

Charles  did  not  materially  change  the  political  .situation  of  the  Vir 


310 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  111. 


ginians.  His  appointment  of  Sir  George  Yeardly,  the  magistrate  who  had 
established  representative  government  in  Virginia,  was  a guaranty  that  no 
such  change  would  take  place.  But  the  king,  who  was  selfish  as  well  as 
weak,  sought  to  enlarge  his  private  fortune  out  of  the  profits  of  the  indus- 
try of  the  Virginia  planters  of  tobacco.  He  gave  them  the  monopoly  of 
production  for  the  market  of  England,  saying:  “It  may  be  well  said  that 
the  plantation  is  built  wholly  on  smoke  which  will  easily  turn  into  air,  if 
either  English  tobacco  be  permitted  to  be  planted  or  Spanish  be  imported.” 
At  the  same  time,  he  forbade  the  tobacco-growers  selling  their  products  to 
any  persons  excepting  such  as  the  king  had  appointed  his  agents.  Among 
these  agents  was  Sir  John  Harvey,  who  had  been  one  of  the  governor’s 
council,  and  who  has  been  represented  as  a rapacious,  unscrupulous,  ava- 
ricious and  cruel  royalist. 

These  arrangements  did  not  disturb  the  Virginians,  and  the  colony  pros- 
pered until  Harvey  was  made  governor  in  1629,  two  years  after  the  death  of 
Yeardly.  In  1628,  not  less  than  a thousand  English  people  emigrated  to 
Virginia.  But  the  advent  of  Harvey  in  1630  was  the  beginning  of  confu- 
sion. He  was  represented  by  his  political  foes  as  an  enemy  of  the  people, 
and  he  made  himself  unpopular  because  he  advocated  and  promoted  a 
system  of  land  grants  which  would  tend  to  place  the  soil  of  the  province 
into  the  possession  of  a few  landed  aristocracy — and  so  be  injurious  to  the 
prosperity  of  the  colony.  In  various  ways  he  offended  the  Republicans. 
Violent  disputes  arose,  and  after  a war  of  words  for  several  years,  the  House 
of  Burgesses  deposed  Harvey  and  sent  commissioners  to  England  with  an 
impeachment.  The  governor  went  with  the  commissioners.  The  king 
refused  to  hear  any  complaints  against  his  agent,  and  sent  him  back  clothed 
with  power  to  rule  the  state  independently  of  the  people. 

Harvey  was  succeeded  in  1639  by  Sir  Francis  Wyatt,  whose  administra- 
tion was  an  uneventful  one.  It  ended  in  February,  1642,  when  Sir  William 
Berkeley,  brother  of  Lord  Berkeley  (one  of  the  earliest  English  proprietors 
of  New  Jersey),  arrived  at  Jamestown  with  the  commission  of  chief  magis- 
trate of  Virginia.  He  was  a fine  specimen  of  a young  English  courtier, 
only  thirty-two  years  of  age.  Handsome  in  person,  educated  at  Oxford, 
polished  by  extensive  travel  on  the  continent  and  possessing  exquisite  taste 
in  dress,  he  was  one  of  the  most  elegant  of  the  cavaliers  of  his  time.  Some 
salutary  measures  which  he  adopted  at  the  beginning  of  his  administration 
for  the  benefit  of  the  people  made  him  popular  in  Virginia;  and  his  natural 
suavity  of  manners,  and  the  generous  hospitality  dispensed  at  his  mansion 
at  Green  Spring,  not  far  from  Jamestown,  sustained  that  popularity  for  many 
years.  He  was  a staunch  loyalist,  but  not  a bigoted  one  ; and  so  prudent 


Chap.  I.  INTOLERANCE  IN  VIRGINIA.  311 

was  the  method  of  his  adhesion  to  the  cause  of  the  king  during  the  civil  war 
from  1641  to  1649,  that  a greater  part  of  the  Virginians  were  in  sympathy 
with  him.  There  was  a party  for  the  Parliament,  in  Virginia,  but  it  was  not 
sufficiently  strong  to  show  any  serious  opposition  to  royal  rule.  The  colo- 
nists were  warmly  attached  to  the  Church  of  England,  yet  there  were  many 
Puritans  there,  for  toleration  had  been  the  rule — Puritans  had  even  been 
invited  to  come,  with  their  ministers,  when  the  peculiar  character  of  the 
revolution,  then  going  on  in  England,  brought  religious  sects  into  political 
prominence.  The  Puritans  in  England  were  identified  with  the  Republicans 
in  their  struggle  with  royalty.  Governor  Berkeley  was  of  the  cavalier  class, 
and  despised  the  non-conformists.  He  perceived  that  a great  majority  of 
the  inhabitants  of  Virginia  were  warmly  attached  to  the  Church  of  England, 
and  he  conceived  that  to  tolerate  Puritanism  in  Virginia  was  to  nurture  a 
Republican  party  there.  So  he  decreed  that  no  Puritan  minister  should 
preach  or  teach  publicly,  except  in  accordance  with  the  constitution  of  the 
Church  of  England.  This  was  soon  followed  by  the  banishment  of  non- 
conformists from  the  colony.  It  was  a calamity  ; but  a heavier  one  soon  fell 
upon  the  Virginians. 

Ever  since  the  massacre  by  the  Indians  in  1622,  there  had  remained  a 
deadly  hostility  between  the  two  races.  In  1643,  the  Virginia  Assembly 
decreed  that  no  terms  of  peace  should  be  entertained  with  the  Indians. 
Opechancanough  was  yet  living  and  past  ninety  years  of  age.  He  had  been 
on  the  Pamunkey,  nursing  his  wrath  for  twenty  years.  Prudence  only  had 
restrained  his  nature,  and  now  he  was  too  old  and  feeble  to  make  war,  on  his 
feet.  But  his  malice  was  as  keen  and  his  will  as  strong  as  they  had  ever 
been  in  the  days  of  his  prime. 

When,  at  length,  Thomas  Rolf,  the  son  of  Pocahontas,  and  then  nearly 
thirty  years  of  age,  came  from  England  by  consent  of  the  Virginia  Assem- 
bly to  visit  his  uncle,  the  aged  emperor,  and  Cleopatra  the  sister  of  his 
mother,  Opechancanough  heard  from  his  lips  about  the  war  between  the 
English  factions.  The  old  emperor  concluded  that  the  time  for  him  to 
strike  a vengeful  blow  had  arrived.  He  sent  runners  throughout  his  empire, 
and  very  soon  a confederacy  was  formed  over  an  area  many  hundred  square 
miles  in  extent  for  the  extermination  of  the  Europeans.  A day  was  fixed 
for  the  execution  of  the  scheme.  The  confederates  were  to  begin  at  the 
frontiers  and  sweep  the  country  to  the  sea.  Opechancanough  was  carried  at 
the  head  of  his  warriors,  on  a litter,  when  early  in  April,  1644,  the  savages 
began  their  horrid  work.  In  the  space  of  two  days  they  slew  more  than 
three  hundred  of  the  settlers,  sparing  none  who  fell  in  their  way.  So  they 
almost  depopulated  the  region  of  the  Pamunkey  and  York  rivers.  Governor 
21 


312 


OUR  COUNTRY.  ' 


Book  III. 


Berkeley  met  the  murderers  with  an  armed  force,  and  drove  them  back  with 
great  slaughter.  Their  old  monarch  was  taken  prisoner,  and  carried  in 
triumph  to  Jamestown.  He  was  so  much  exhausted  that  he  could  not  raise 
his  eyelids,  and  in  that  forlorn  condition  he  was  mortally  wounded  by  a 
bullet  from  the  gun  of  an  English  soldier  who  guarded  him,  and  who  was 
impelled  by  the  remembrance  of  the  bereavements  he  had  suffered  at  the 
hands  of  the  Indians,  and  of  the  agency  of  the  old  chief  in  the  matter. 
The  people  out  of  curiosity  gathered  around  the  dying  emperor.  Just 
before  he  expired,  hearing  the,  hum  of  a multitude,  he  asked  one  of  his 
attendants  to  raise  his  eyelids.  When  he  observed  the  crowd,  he  raised 
himself  from  the  ground,  and  in  a haughty  tone  commanded  an  officer  near 
him  to  summon  the  governor  before  him.  When  the  magistrate  came,  the 
old  monarch  said,  as  fiery  indignation  gave  strength  to  his  voice:  “ Had  it 
been  my  fortune  to  have  taken  Sir  William  Berkeley  prisoner,  I would  not 
meanly  have  exposed  him  as  a show  to  my  people.”  He  then  stretched 
himself  upon  the  earth  and  died. 

With  Opechancanough  expired  the  Powhatan  confederacy.  After  ceding 
large  tracts  of  land  to  the  Virginians,  the  chiefs  acknowledged  allegiance  to 
the  authorities  of  the  province,  and  so  passed  away  the  political  life  of  that 
once  powerful  empire.  The  colonists  then  had  peace  and  prosperity.  In 
1648,  there  were  twenty  thousand  Europeans  in  Virginia.  “The  cottages 
were  filled  with  children,  as  the  ports  with  ships  and  emigrants.”  The 
people  were  loyal  to  Charles  because  he  left  them  in  the  enjoyment  of 
liberty.  They  felt  none  of  the  oppressions,  nor  were  they  distracted  by  the 
disputes  which  afflicted  their  kindred  at  home.  They  exercised  the  freedom 
of  an  independent  government ; and  when  the  king  was  beheaded,  they 
opened  wide  their  hospitable  arms  to  the  cavaliers  who  fled  in  horror  from 
England.  Many  of  these  fugitives  were  of  the  gentry,  nobility  and  clergy. 
They  were  valuable  additions  to  the  refined  society  of  Virginia,  and  strength- 
ened the  royal  cause  in  that  province.  When  the  king  was  slain,  the  Vir- 
ginians acknowledged  his  exiled  son  as  their  sovereign ; and  Sir  William 
Berkeley  conducted  the  affairs  of  the  colony  as  governor,  under  a com- 
mission sent  to  him  by  that  prince,  from  Breda,  in  Flanders.  Virginia  was 
the  last  country  belonging  to  England  that  submitted  to  the  government  of 
the  rulers  of  the  commonwealth  which  succeeded  the  monarchy. 

The  Republican  Parliament  was  offended  by  this  persistent  attachment 
to  royalty,  and  in  the  early  spring  of  1652,  sent  Sir  George  Ayscue  with  a 
powerful  fleet  to  reduce  the  Virginians  to  submission.  It  bore  commission- 
ers of  the  Parliament,  who  were  clothed  with  power  to  exercise  conciliatory 
or  harsh  measures — to  compromise,  or  to  proclaim  freedom  to  the  slaves  and 


Chap.  I. 


PRINCE  CHARLES  INVITED  TO  VIRGINIA. 


313 


to  put  arms  in  their  hands  to  make  slaves  of  their  masters.  Berkeley  met 
the  commissioners  with  firmness.  They  were  astonished  at  the  boldness  of 
the  Virginians,  and  deemed  it  more  prudent  to  compromise  than  to  coerce. 
They  made  satisfactory  arrangements,  by  which  the  political  freedom  of  the 
colonists  was  guaranteed.  Berkeley  disdained  to  make  any  stipulation  for 
himself  with  those  whom  he  regarded  as  usurpers,  and  he  withdrew  to  his 
plantation  at  Green  Spring,  where  he  lived  in  retirement  as  a private  person. 
The  Virginians  then  elected  Richard  Bennet,  governor.  When  news  of  the 
preparation  of  an  armament  for  the  subjugation  of  the  colony  reached  Vir- 
ginia, Berkeley  and  the  cavalier  party  resolved  not  to  submit,  and  they  sent  a 
messenger  to  Breda  to  invite  Prince  Charles  to  come  over  and  be  their  king. 
He  was  preparing  to  come,  with  his  mother  and  some  others  of  his  family, 
when  affairs  took  a turn  in  England  which  foreshadowed  a speedy  restoration 
of  the  monarchy  there.  That  event  occurred  in  1660,  when  the  prince 
ascended  the  throne  of  his  father,  as  Charles  the  Second,  at  the  age  of 
thirty  years.  The  monarch  did  not  forget  the  loyalty  of  the  Virginians. 
He  caused  the  arms  of  that  province  to  be  quartered  with  those  of  England, 
Scotland  and  Ireland,  as  an  independent  member  of  his  empire.  From  this 
circumstance  the  title  of  the  “ Old  Dominion  ” was  given  to  Virginia. 
Coins,  with  these  quarterings,  were  struck  as  late  as  1773. 


CHAPTER 


II. 


BERKELEY  AN  OPPRESSOR  — REPUBLICANISM  IN  VIRGINIA  — ROYAL  FAVORITES  ENRICHED  — CON- 
DITION OF  THE  VIRGINIANS — WAR  WITH  THE  INDIANS — BERKELEY’S  BAD  CONDUCT — BACON’S 
REBELLION — BERKELEY’S  CRUELTIES — A BREACH  OF  PRIVILEGE — A PROFLIGATE  GOVERNOR — 
VIRGINIANS  IMPOVERISHED  AND  DEGRADED  BY  MISRULE — POLITICAL  TROUBLES  IN  ENGLAND — 
WHITE  SLAVES  IN  VIRGINIA — GROWTH  OF  REPUBLICANISM  THERE — THE  REVOLUTION  OF  l688. 

The  Virginians  soon  felt  the  deep  significance  of  the  injunction: 
“ Put  not  your  trust  in  princes.”  When  Matthews  died  (1660)^ 
whom  Cromwell  had  appointed  Governor  of  Virginia,  the  people 
elected  Berkeley.  He  refused  to  serve,  excepting  under  royal  appointment; 
and  he  went  to  England  to  congratulate  Charles  on  his  accession  to  the 
throne,  when  he  was  graciously  received  by  the  sovereign.  The  king  spoke 
very  kindly  of  the  Virginians,  because  of  their  loyalty,  and  praised  them  as 
the  “ best  of  his  distant  children.”  These  manifestations  of  love  were  the 
velvet  coverings  of  the  iron  hand  which  soon  afterwards  signed  those  decrees 
of  a pliant  Parliapient  which  deeply  oppressed  the  Virginians  by  restric- 
tions upon  their  commerce,  their  political  franchises  and  their  religious 
liberty. 

Charles  gave  Berkeley  a new  commission,  and  he  returned  to  Virginia 
prepared  to  execute  his  master’s  will  in  full.  At  an  election  of  members  for 
a new  House  of  Burgesses,  the  candidates  of  the  cavaliers  and  land-owners 
were  chosen,  and  Berkeley  had  as  pliant  an  assembly  of  royalists  as  his  king 
possessed  in  the  Parliament.  Navigation  laws,  oppressive  to  the  commerce 
of  the  colony,  were  passed,  and  Berkeley  executed  them.  Marriage  laws, 
the  freedom  of  elections  and  almost  every  other  franchise  possessed  by  the 
people  were  modified,  abridged  or  abolished.  The  Church  of  England  was 
made  supreme,  and  persecution  with  its  fiery  broom  attempted  to  sweep 
Baptists,  Friends  and  other  Puritans  out  of  Virginia.  When  Owen,  the  bold 
Quaker  preacher,  stood  with  his  head  covered  with  his  hat  before  the  court 
at  whose  bar  he  had  been  summoned,  and  said  meekly  but  firmly,  “Tender 
consciences  obey  the  laws  of  God  however  they  suffer,”  the  angry  reply  of 
the  court,  in  the  spirit  of  the  age,  was : “ There  is  no  toleration  for  wicked 
consciences.”  Berkeley  enforced  the  laws;  and  Friends  and  Puritans  sought 


Chap.  II. 


REPUBLICANISM  IN  VIRGINIA. 


315 


peace  and  a refuge  in  the  wilds  of  upper  North  Carolina,  where  they  formed 
settlements. 

Less  tolerant  and  just  than  when  he  was  younger  and  weaker,  Berkeley, 
in  the  later  years  of  his  administration,  drifted,  in  thought  and  action,  with 
the  cavaliers,  who  hated  everything  that  marked  the  character  of  the  Puri- 
tans. They  despised  the  popular  education  and  consequent  elevation  of  the 
“common  people”  of  New  England;  and  Berkeley  wrote,  some  years  after 
the  restoration  of  monarchy,  “ I thank  God  there  are  no  free  schools  nor 
printing  in  Virginia,  and  I hope  we  shall  not  have  them  these  hundred 
years.  For  learning  has  brought  heresy  and  disobedience  and  sects  into 
the  world,  and  printing  has  divulged  them,  and  libels  against  the  best  gov- 
ernment ; God  keep  us  from  both  ! ” 

Stimulated  by  oppression,  republicanism  grew  vigorously  in  Virginia. 
The  men  of  toil,  and  righteous  ones  of  the  aristocracy,  soon  formed  a 
powerful  republican  party.  Their  strength  was  increased  by  the  rank 
injustice  of  the  king,  who  seems  not  to  have  had  a clear  perception  of  right 
and  wrong.  He  gave  to  profligate  favorites  large  tracts  of  land  in  Virginia, 
some  of  them  under  cultivation  ; and  in  1673,  he  actually  gave  to  Lord  Cul- 
pepper, a cunning  and  covetous  member  of  the  Commission  for  Trade  and 
Plantations,  and  the  Earl  of  Arlington,  a heartless  spendthrift,  “ all  the 
dominion  of  land  and  water,  called  Virginia,”  for  the  term  of  thirty-one 
years. 

This  act  excited  the  alarm  of  the  more  thoughtful  men  of  the  aristocratic 
assembly,  and  a committee  was  appointed  to  carry  a remonstrance  to  the 
king.  Its  mission  was  unfruitful.  The  republicans  were  inflamed  with  just 
indignation,  and  rebellious  murmurs  were  heard  everywhere.  The  toiling 
people  were  made  to  regard  the  aristocracy  as  their  natural  enemies.  The 
latter  had  the  power  to  promote  the  welfare  of  the  people  at  large,  but 
omitted  to  do  so.  Everything  of  a public  character  was  neglected.  There 
were  no  roads  or  bridges  in  Virginia.  In  boats  and  along  bridle-paths  the 
people  were  compelled  to  travel,  and  to  ford  or  swim  the  streams.  There 
were  no  schools.  Every  planter  was  compelled  to  be  his  own  mechanic. 
Most  of  the  houses  of  the  toilers  were  mean  log-huts  with  unglazed  windows. 
Villages  nowhere  existed,  for  the  inhabitants  were  scattered  over  a wide 
domain.  Even  the  capital  of  the  colony  consisted  only  of  a church,  state- 
house  and  eighteen  dwellings  at  the  time  we  are  considering,  and  the  Assem- 
bly had,  until  lately,  met  in  the  hall  of  an  alehouse. 

Meanwhile,  the  large  land-owners  were  living  in  luxury  in  fine  mansions 
in  sight  of  some  beautiful  rivers.  They  were  surrounded  by  slaves  or  inden- 
tured servants,  and  were  engaged  in  a sort  of  patriarchal  life.  At  the  same 


3i6 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  III. 


time  Governor  Berkeley  was  clamoring  for  an  increase  of  salary,  while  in 
his  stables  and  his  fields  he  had  seventy  horses ; and  large  flocks  of  sheep 
whitened  the  broad  acres  of  the  Green  Spring  plantation.  The  “ common 
people”  saw  clearly  that  the  tendency  of  circumstances  in  Virginia  was 
toward  a rich  landed  aristocracy  and  an  impoverished  peasantry,  and  they 
longed  for  a pretext  and  an  opportunity  to  assert  their  natural  rights.  That 
pretext  and  opportunity  soon  appeared. 

In  the  summer  of  1675,  the  Indians,  in  despair,  invaded  Virginia  from 
the  north.  When  they  were  sweeping  through  Maryland,  John  Washington, 


LAND  TRAVELERS  IN  VIRGINIA. 


the  great-grandfather  of  our  Beloved  Patriot,  met  them  with  a force  of  Vir- 
ginians. A fierce  border  war  ensued.  Governor  Berkeley,  who  had  the 
monopoly  of  the  beaver  trade  with  the  Indians,  and  was  willing  to  be  just, 
treated  them  leniently.  When  he  heard  that  six  of  their  chiefs  who  came 
to  treat  for  peace  had  been  treacherously  murdered  by  Englishmen,  he 
exclaimed  with  warmth : “ Had  they  killed  all  of  my  nearest  relations,  yet 
if  they  had  come  to  treat  of  peace  they  ought  to  have  gone  in  peace.” 

Fired  by  this  treachery,  the  savages  swept  over  the  country  between  the 


VIRGINIANS  DEFENDING  THEMSELVES  AGAINST  INDIANS. 


Chap.  II. 


NATHANIEL  BACON. 


317 


Rappahannock  and  the  James  rivers,  strewing  their  pathway  with  death  and 
desolation.  They  ceased  not  to  kill  until  their  wrath  was  appeased  by  the 
slaughter  of  at  least  ten  Englishmen  for  each  of  their  chiefs  slain.  Insecurity 
was  everywhere  felt,  and  dread  filled  every  cabin.  The  apparent  supineness 
of  the  governor  in  the  presence  of  the  great  peril,  aroused  the  people  to 
vigorous  action.  Led  by  the  young  and  wealthy  Nathaniel  Bacon,  a planter 
and  lawyer  on  the  James,  who  was  fluent  in  speech  and  bold  in  action,  and 
who  was  very  popular,  they  petitioned  the  governor  for  leave  to  arm  and 
protect  themselves.  The  governor  had  reason  to  suspect  Bacon  of  am- 
bitious rather  than  patriotic  motives,  for  he  had  been  concerned  in  a 
partial  insurrection  the  previous  year,  suffered  imprisonment  and  had 
been  generously  pardoned  by  the  executive.  So  Berkeley  refused  their 
petition. 

The  impetuous  Bacon  took  fire  at  this  refusal.  He  knew  the  hidden 
cause.  He  at  once  proclaimed  that  he  was  ready  to  lead  the  people  against 
the  dusky  invaders,  without  permission,  if  another  white  person  should  be 
murdered.  Very  soon  the  news  came  that  some  on  his  own  plantation,  near 
Richmond,  had  been  slain.  The  people  gathered  under  the  shadows  of  a 
great  tulip  tree  to  consult.  Bacon  was  among  them.  He  mounted  a stump, 
and  with  impassioned  eloquence  stirred  their  hearts  as  if  with  electric  fire. 
He  denounced  the  governor  as  neglectful  or  imbecile,  and  advised  his  hearers 
to  take  up  arms  in  their  own  defence. 

The  excited  colonists  followed  Bacon’s  advice.  The  multitude  were  soon 
embodied  in  military  form,  and  chose  Bacon  to  be  their  general.  He 
asked  the  governor  to  give  him  a commission  in  confirmation  of  the  ex- 
pressed will  of  the  people.  Berkeley  refused,  and  Bacon  marched  against 
the  Indians.  He  had  not  yet  crossed  the  York  River,  when  the  governor, 
yielding  to  the  bad  advice  of  an  aristocratic  faction  in  the  Assembly,  pro- 
claimed him  to  be  a rebel  and  ordered  his  followers  to  disperse.  A few 
weak-kneed  Peters  obeyed,  but  a large  portion  clung  to  Bacon’s  standard. 
He  led  the  expedition  forward.  At  the  same  time  the  lower  settlements 
arose  in  insurrection,  and  demanded  the  immediate  dissolution  of  the  aristo- 
cratic Assembly. 

Bacon  drove  the  Indians  back  toward  the  Rappahannock.  A new 
Assembly  was  chosen,  and  he  was  elected  to  a seat  in  the  House  of  Bur- 
gesses, from  Henrico  county. 

The  new  Assembly  represented  popular  opinion  in  Virginia,  and  in  their 
legislation  they  proceeded  upon  the  principles  of  freedom,  justice  and 
humanity,  and  the  governor  and  his  fellow  cavaliers  were  compelled  to  yield 
at  all  points.  The  Assembly  voted  to  give  the  required  commission  to 


318 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  III. 


Bacon,  but  Berkeley  refused  to  sign  it.  Some  of  the  members  were  dis- 
posed to  support  him  in  the  refusal.  Bacon,  fearing  treachery,  retired  to 
the  Middle  Plantation  (now  Williamsburg),  where  he  was  soon  surrounded 
by  about  five  hundred  followers  who  proclaimed  him  commander-in-chief  of 
the  Virginia  forces.  With  these  he  marched  to  Jamestown  and  demanded 
his  commission.  The  governor,  regarding  the  movement  as  rebellious, 
again  refused  to  sign  it.  In  an  angry  moment  the  old  cavalier  went  out  and 
confronted  the  insurgents.  Baring  his  bosom  to  their  weapons,  he  cried 
out:  “Shoot!  shoot!  it  is  a fair  mark ! ” Bacon  said  respectfully:  “ Not  a 
hair  of  your  head  shall  be  hurt ; we  have  come  for  our  commissions  to  save 
our  lives  from  the  Indians.” 

The  passion  of  the  governor  soon  yielded  to  his  judgment  or  his  fears, 
and  he  not  only  signed  the  commission  but  joined  his  council  in  commend- 
ing Bacon  to  the  king  as  a zealous,  loyal,  and  patriotic  citizen.  That  was 
done  on  the  4th  of  July,  1676,  just  one  hundred  years  to  a day  before  the 
representatives  of  English-American  colonies  signed  the  famous  document 
written  by  a Virginia  “ rebel,”  which  declared  these  colonies  to  be  free  and 
independent  States. 

On  receiving  his  commission.  Bacon  marched  against  the  savages  beyond 
the  York  River.  Berkeley  appears  to  have  learned  lessons  of  faithlessness 
from  his  immoral  king,  in  his  old  age,  for  as  soon  as  Bacon  had  departed,  the 
governor  went  over  the  York  into  Gloucester  county,  called  a convention  of 
the  inhabitants,  and  proposed  to  proclaim  Bacon  a traitor.  The  convention, 
though  loyal,  spurned  the  proposition,  when  the  proud  and  obstinate  baron 
issued  such  a proclamation  in  spite  of  their  remonstrances.  When  the  news 
of  this  perfidy  reached  Bacon,  in  his  camp  on  the  Pamunkey  River,  he  said : 
“ It  vexes  me  to  the  heart,  that  while  I am  hunting  the  wolves  and  tigers 
that  destroy  our  lands,  I should,  myself,  be  pursued  as  a savage.  Shall  per- 
sons wholly  devoted  to  their  king  and  country — men  hazarding  their  lives 
against  the  public  enemy — deserve  the  appellation  of  rebels  and  traitors? 
The  whole  country  is  witness  to  our  peaceable  behavior.  But  those  in 
authority,  how  have  they  obtained  their  estates?  Have  they  not  devoured 
the  common  treasury  ? What  arts,  what  sciences,  what  learning  have  they 
promoted?  I appeal  to  the  king  and  Parliament,  where  the  cause  of  the 
people  will  be  heard  impartially.” 

Bacon  felt  compelled,  by  the  action  of  the  governor,  to  lead  in  a revolu- 
tion. He  invited  the  Virginians  to  meet  in  convention  at  the  Middle  Plan- 
tation, to  devise  means  for  saving  the  colony  from  the  grasp  of  tyranny. 
The  best  men  in  the  colony  hastened  to  the  gathering.  From  noon  until 
midnight  on  a warm  August  day,  that  convention  debated  and  deliberated. 


Chap.  II. 


CIVIL  WAR  IN  VIRGINIA. 


319 


Bacon’s  eloquence  and  logic  led  them  to  vigorous  action,  and  the  whole 
assemblage  took  an  oath  to  support  their  leader  in  subduing  the  Indians  and 
preventing  civil  war. 

In  the  strength  of  these  popular  pledges,  Bacon  proceeded  against  the 
savages.  The  governor,  alarmed  by  the  demonstration  at  the  Middle  Plan- 
tation, fled,  with  some  of  his  council,  to  the  eastern  shore  of  the  Chesapeake, 
where,  by  promises  of  booty,  he  tried  to  raise  an  army  among  the  inhabitants 
and  the  seamen  of  English  ships  in  the  ports.  This  movement  demanded 
prompt  action  on  the  part  of  Bacon.  With  this  leader  was  the  brave 
William  Drummond,  who  had  been  the  first  governor  of  North  Carolina. 
He  was  accompanied  by  his  wife  Sarah,  who  was  as  brave  as  he.  She  did 
much  to  inspire  the  Virginians — civilians  and  soldiers — with  courage  to  go 
on  in  revolution  ; and  she  was  denounced  as  a “ notorious  and  wicked  rebel.” 
When  her  husband  proposed  to  declare  Berkeley’s  flight  from  Jamestown  to 
be  an  abdication  of  government,  and  the  appointment  of  another  in  his  place, 
and  it  was  suggested  that  a power  would  then  come  from  England  that 
would  ruin  the  republicans  of  the  colony,  Sarah  Drummond,  who  knew 
that  the  realm  was  then  distracted  by  factions,  snatched  up  a small  stick 
from  the  ground,  and  exclaimed : “ I fear  the  power  of  England  no  rriore 
than  a broken  straw.  The  child  that  is  unborn,”  she  said,  “ shall  have  cause 
to  rejoice  for  the  good  that  will  come  by  the  rising  of  the  country.” 

Drummond’s  proposition  was  agreed  to.  Government  in  the  colony  was 
declared  to  be  abdicated  by  Berkeley,  and  that  he  was  fomenting  civil  war ; 
and  Bacon  and  four  of  his  colleagues  issued  writs  for  a representative  con- 
vention of  the  people.  Meanwhile  Berkeley  had  gathered  a motley  host  of 
followers  on  the  eastern  shore,  many  of  them  allured  by  hopes  of  plunder. 
He  had  proclaimed  freedom  to  the  slaves  of  “rebels”  who  should  join  his 
standard.  The  English  vessels  on  that  coast  were  placed  at  his  service,  and 
some  Indians  joined  him.  With  this  army  under  the  command  of  Major 
Beverly,  in  five  ships  and  ten  sloops,  the  governor  sailed  for  Jamestown,  and 
landed  there  early  in  September.  After  offering  thanksgiving  for  his  safe 
arrival,  he  again  proclaimed  Nathaniel  Bacon  a traitor. 

The  republican  leader  was  taken  by  surprise.  He  had  but  a few  followers 
in  arms ; but  the  news  spread  swiftly  through  the  forests  and  over  the  plan- 
tations, and  very  soon  Bacon  was  at  the  head  of  brave  Virginians  marching 
toward  their  capital.  On  their  way,  they  seized  as  hostages  or  pledges  of 
honor  on  the  part  of  their  husbands  the  wives  of  royalists  who  were  with 
Berkeley. 

On  a moonlit  evening  the  republicans  appeared  before  Jamestown,  and 
cast  up  an  intrenchment.  In  vain  the  governor  urged  his  troops  to  go  out 


320 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book.  111. 


and  attack  them.  His  men  were  not  made  of  stuff  for  soldiers.  Only  the 
seamen  showed  pluck,  and  they  were  too  few  to  do  much.  At  length  the 
royalists  stole  away  in  their  ships  by  night  and  compelled  the  indignant 
governor  to  follow  them.  Then  Bacon  entered  Jamestown — ^the  only  village 
in  all  Virginia — and  assumed  the  reins  of  civil  power.  He  was  startled  by  a 
rumor  that  the  royalists  of  the  upper  counties  were  coming  down  upon  him. 
In  a council  of  war  it  was  resolved  to  burn  the  capital,  that  no  shelter  might 
remain  for  an  enemy.  At  twilight  the  torch  was  applied,  and  the  blaze  of 

the  conflagration  was  seen  by 
the  royalists  on  the  ships, 
far  down  the  James  River. 
Drummond  set  fire  to  his  own 
house — one  of  the  best  in  the 
village — as  a sacrifice  to  free- 
dom. So  perished  the  first 
town  founded  in  America  by 
Englishmen.  It  was  never  re- 
built. No  vestige  of  it  re- 
mains but  the  ruins  of  the 
church  tower  and  a few  monu- 
ments in  the  graveyard  near  it. 

Bacon  now  hastened  to  meet 
the  royalists  from  the  north. 
These  were  not  disposed  to 
fight,  and  in  a body  they  de- 
serted their  leader  and  joined 
the  patriots.  The  royalists  of 
Gloucester  yielded  their  alle- 
giance to  Bacon,  and  he  re- 
solved to  cross  the  Chesapeake 
and  drive  the  cavaliers  and 
their  adherents  out  of  Vir- 

KU.NS  OK  THE  OLD  cKDRCH  TOWER.  deadlier  foe  thau 

these  now  attacked  the  repub- 
lican leader.  The  malaria  from  the  marshes  around  Jamestown  poisoned  his 
blood,  and  he  died  of  a malignant  fever  on  the  i ith  of  October,  1676.  There 
was  no  man  to  receive  his  mantle  of  authority  and  influence,  and  his  depar- 
ture paralyzed  the  cause  he  had  espoused.  His  followers  made  but  a feeble 
resistance  thereafter,  and  before  the  first  of  November  Governor  Berkeley 
returned  to  the  Middle  Plantation  and  resumed  the  functions  of  govern- 


Chap.  II. 


CRUELTIES  OF  A ROYAL  GOVERNOR. 


321 


ment.  Nathaniel  Bacon  failed,  and  he  is  embalmed  in  history  as  a rebel. 
Had  he  succeeded,  he  would  have  been  immortalized  as  a patriot. 

The  vexations  and  fatigues  which  Berkeley  had  endured  in  his  contest 
with  the  republicans  soured  his  haughty  temper  and  made  him  very  miser- 
able. He  signalized  his  return  to  power  by  acts  of  wanton  cruelty.  His 
king  had  proclaimed  Bacon  to  be  a traitor,  and  sent  an  armament  under  Sir 
John  Berry  to  assist  in  crushing  the  rebellion  in  Virginia.  These  were  the 
first  royal  troops  sent  to  America  to  suppress  the  aspirations  of  the  people 
for  freedom.  The  incident  was  repeated  a hundred  years  later  when  Howe, 
Clinton,  Cornwallis  and  Burgoyne  were  here,  like  Sir  John  Berry,  leading 
British  troops  to  suppress  a more  formidable  and  successful  uprising  of 
Americans  in  favor  of  the  rights  of  man. 

Feeling  strong,  Berkeley,  with  strange  stony-heartedness,  pursued  the 
accomplices  of  Bacon  with  malignant  severity,  until  twenty-two  of  them 
were  hanged.  Even  King  Charles  was  disgusted  with  his  cruelty,  and  said  ; 
“ The  old  fool  has  taken  more  lives  in  that  naked  country  than  I have  taken 
for  the  murder  of  my  father.”  The  first  martyr  was  Thomas  Hansford,  a 
gallant  young  nativ'e  of  Virginia.  When  he  was  brought  before  Berkeley, 
he  boldly  avowed  his  attachment  to  the  republican  cause  ; and  when  he  was 
sentenced  to  be  hanged,  he  said  : “ I ask  no  favor  but  that  I may  be  shot 
like  a soldier  and  not  hanged  like  a dog.”  The  governor  replied;  “You 
die,  not  as  a soldier,  but  as  a rebel.”  When  he  came  to  the  gallows,  he 
said:  “Take  notice,  I die  a loyal  subject  and  a lover  of  my  country.” 

When  Edmund  Cheesman  was  arraigned  before  the  governor,  and  he  was 
asked  why  he  engaged  in  Bacon’s  wicked  scheme,  before  he  could  answer, 
his  young  wife  stepped  forward  and  said : “ My  provocations  made  my  hus- 
band join  in  the  cause  for  which  Bacon  contended  ; but  for  me,  he  had  never 
done  what  he  has  done.  Since  what  is  done,”  she  said,  as  she  fell  upon  her 
knees  in  an  attitude  of  supplication,  with  her  head  bowed  and  covered  with 
her  hands,  “ was  done  by  my  means,  I am  most  guilty  ; let  me  bear  the 
punishment ; let  me  be  hanged,  but  let  my  husband  be  pardoned.”  The 
governor  angrily  cried  out:  “Away  with  you!”  and  added  a brutal  insinu- 
ation against  her  virtue.  The  poor  young  wife  fainted,  and  her  husband  was 
led  to  the  gallows. 

So  fearful,  at  first,  was  the  cruel  old  baron  that  some  of  his  intended 
victims  might  escape  through  a verdict  of  acquittal  by  a jury,  that  men  were 
taken  from  the  tribunal  of  a court-martial  directly  to  the  gallows  without  the 
forms  of  civil  law.  When  the  brave  Drummond,  who  had  been  captured, 
was  brought  before  him,  the  governor  with  wicked  satire  made  a low  bow 
and  exultingly  cried:  “You  are  very  welcome;  I am  more  glad  to  see  you 


322 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  III. 


than  any  man  in  Virginia ; you  shall  be  hanged  in  half  an  hour.”  “ I 
expect  no  mercy  from  you,”  Drummond  replied.  “ I have  followed  the  lead 
of  my  conscience,  and  done  what  I might  to  free  my  countrymen  from 
oppression.”  He  was  condemned  at  one  o’clock,  and  was  hanged  at  four 
o’clock.  By  a decree,  his  brave  wife  Sarah  was  denounced  as  a traitor  and 
banished,  with  her  children,  to  the  wilderness,  there  to  subsist  by  the  charity 
of  sympathizing  friends.  And  after  these  judicial  murders  had  been  pub- 
licly condemned  by  the  king  as  contrary  to  his  commands  and  offensive  to 
his  clemency,  Berkeley  continued  to  fine,  imprison  and  confiscate  the  prop- 
erty of  all  those  who,  in  any  way,  were  accomplices  of  Bacon,  until  he  was 
recalled  in  the  spring  of  1677,  and  went  to  England  with  the  returning  fleet 
of  Sir  John  Berry.  So  glad  were  the  colonists  at  the  departure  of  the  gover- 
nor that  they  fired  great  guns  and  lighted  bonfires.  In  England  his  cruelties 
were  severely  censured ; and  Sir  William  Berkeley  died  of  grief  and  mor- 
tified pride  before  he  was  permitted  to  stand  before  his  king.  Circumstances 
had  transformed  a wise,  prudent  and  benevolent  magistrate  in  the  days  of 
his  young  manhood,  into  an  unwise  and  cruel  oppressor  in  his  old  age. 

With  the  troops  under  Sir  John  Berry  came  Colonel  Jeffreys,  appointed 
to  recall  Berkeley  and  succeed  him  as  governor.  With  him  were  associated 
Sir  John  and  Colonel  Moryson  as  commissioners  to  inquire  into  and  report 
the  causes  of  “ Bacon’s  Rebellion.”  They  found  the  Virginia  Assembly 
pretty  thoroughly  winnowed  of  its  aristocratic  elements,  and  in  sympathy 
with  the  people.  The  Burgesses  would  yield  nothing  repugnant  to  liberty 
because  of  the  presence  of  troops  quartered  in  Virginia;  and  when  Jeffreys 
and  his  associates  demanded  that  all  the  books  and  journals  of  the  Assem- 
bly should  be  submitted  to  their  inspection,  they  hesitated.  Those  papers 
were  seized ; and  when  the  Assembly  demanded  reparation  for  the  insult, 
and  Jeffreys  appealed  to  the  Great  Seal  of  England  in  defence  of  the  act,  the 
Burgesses  firmly  replied  to  him  that  “ such  a breach  of  privilege  could  not 
be  commanded  under  the  Great  Seal,  because  they  could  not  find  that  any 
king  of  England  had  ever  done  so  in  former  times.”  When  the  king  was 
informed  of  this  reply,  with  foolish  arrogance  worthy  of  his  grandfather,  he 
commanded  the  governor  to  “signify  his  majesty’s  indignation  at  language 
so  seditious,  and  to  give  the  leaders  marks  of  the  royal  displeasure.”  The 
Burgesses  were  quite  indifferent  to  the  royal  frowns  or  to  the  royal  favors. 

Soon  after  Berkeley’s  departure  from  Virginia,  the  king  appointed  Lord 
Culpepper,  one  of  his  favorites  to  whom  he  had  leased  the  province  for  the 
term  of  a generation,  governor  of  the  domain  for  life,  with  a salary  double 
in  amount  that  received  by  the  late  magistrate,  because  he  was  a peer.  It 
now  became  a proprietary  colony.  Culpepper  went  there  reluctantly. 


EDMUND  CHEESEMAN’S  WIFE  BEFORE  GOVERNOR  BERKELEY. 


Chap.  II. 


A PROFLIGATE  GOVERNOR. 


323 


in  1680,  with  instructions  to  bury  all  animosities  growing  out  of  Bacon’s 
“rebellion.”  But  the  profligate  governor  began  his  administration  by  dis-' 
franchising  all  of  the  willing  followers  of  Bacon.  He  despoiled  the  colonists 
of  privilege  after  privilege,  and  exercised  measures  which  impoverished 
them.  By  a proclamation  forbidding,  under  severest  penalties,  all  dis- 
respectful words  concerning  the  governor  and  his  administration,  he  closed 
the  royal  ear  against  all  complaints  of  his  tyranny  ; and  having  accumulated, 
by  a system  of  pillage,  a considerable  sum  of  money,  he  returned  to  England 
to  spend  it  in  dissipation. 


THE  SEIZURE  OF  THE  VIRGINIA  RECORDS  ORDERED. 


Culpepper  returned  to  Virginia  in  1682.  His  profligacy  and  rapacity  so 
disgusted  the  people  and  fostered  discontents,  that,  unable  to  endure  him 
longer,  they  broke  out  into  insurrection.  His  false  reports  of  the  matter 
induced  the  king  to  issue  an  order  for  the  hanging  of  several  of  the  most 
influential  leaders ; but  at  length  the  true  state  of  the  case  was  laid  before 
Charles,  and  he  recalled  the  grant  made  to  Culpepper  and  Arlington,  and 


324 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  III. 


constituted  Virginia  a royal  province  again.  Lord  Howard  of  Effingham 
was  sent  over  as  governor  in  Culpepper’s  place.  His  greed  was  excessive, 
and  was  not  controlled  by  moral  principles.  He  was  instructed  by  the  king 
not  to  allow  a printing-press  to  be  set  up  in  Virginia,  and  he  was  left  free  to 
sway  the  judiciary  for  his  own  benefit.  With  him  was  sent  a frigate  to 
cruise  on  the  coast  and  enforce  the  navigation  laws.  His  rapacity  was  so 
shameless  in  the  methods  of  its  gratification,  that  the  colonists  were  on  the 
point  of  rising  in  a general  insurrection,  when  news  came  of  the  death  of 
King  Charles  and  the  accession  to  the  throne  of  his  brother  James,  Duke  of 
York.  The  Virginians  rejoiced,  for  they  felt  that  any  change  must  better 
their  condition — it  could  not  well  be  made  worse. 

Virginia  was  so  impoverished  and  really  degraded  by  misrule,  that  volun- 
tary emigration  to  its  shores  had  almost  ceased  at  the  time  of  the  accession 
of  James,  in  1685.  Another  and  strong  tide  of  emigration  now  began  to 
flow  thitherward. 

Charles  the  Second  had  a son  born  out  of  wedlock,  whom  he  had  created 
Duke  of  Monmouth.  He  had  participated  in  a movement  for  making  him- 
self the  successor  of  his  father  instead  of  the  Duke  of  York,  and  had  fled  to 
Holland.  On  the  accession  of  James,  this  young  man  engaged  with  others 
to  carry  out  the  project.  He  sailed  from  Holland  with  eighty  men,  and 
landed  on  the  west  of  England,  where  he  was  joined  by  about  six  thousand 
partisans,  many  of  them  men  of  good  families  and  education.  Monmouth 
was  defeated,  captured  and  beheaded,  and  his  partisans  were  most  severely 
treated.  Sir  George  Jeffries  was  then  Lord  Chief  Justice  of  England.  He 
was  sent  into  the  insurgent  district,  where  he  held  what  are  known  in  history 
as  the  “ Bloody  Assizes.”  The  partisans  of  Monmouth  were  brought  before 
him  by  scores.  He  seemed  to  delight  in  convicting  and  punishing  them. 
The  king  wrote:  “Lord  Chief  Justice  is  making  his  campaign  in  the  west. 
He  has  already  condemned  several  hundreds — some  of  whom  are  already 
executed,  more  are  to  be,  and  the  others  sent  to  the  plantations.”  He 
caused  three  hundred  and  twenty  to  be  hanged  or  beheaded,  and  more  than 
eight  hundred  to  be  sold  as  slaves  in  the  West  Indies  or  Virginia.  Many  of 
them  were  given  to  court  favorites  that  they  might  sell  them  on  speculation, 
or  extort  money  for  the  pardon  of  those  who  had  any  to  give. 

In  this  nefarious  business  Effingham  engaged.  So,  also,  were  some  of 
his  friends;  and  many  men  of  culture,  as  well  as  good  mechanics,  were  sent 
to  Virginia  to  be  sold  as  slaves,  and  so  added  good  social  materials  to  the 
population.  “ Take  all  care,”  wrote  the  malignant  monarch  to  Effingham, 
by  the  hand  of  Sunderland,  “ that  they  continue  to  serve  for  ten  years  at 
least,  and  that  they  be  not  permitted  in  any  manner  to  redeem  themselves 


Chap.  II. 


REVOLUTION  IN  ENGLAND. 


325 


by  money  or  otherwise,  until  that  term  be  fully  expired.  Prepare  a bill  for 
the  Assembly  of  our  colony,  with  such  clauses  as  shall  be  requisite  for  this 
purpose.”  This  malice  was  not  countenanced  by  the  Assembly.  The  Bur- 
gesses showed,  on  all  occasions,  a manly  spirit  of  resistance  to  wrong ; and 
when  a new  government  in  England  pardoned  these  exiles  in  December, 
1689,  the  Virginians  received  them  with  open  arms  as  brethren  and  citizens. 

A new  Assembly  convened  in  1688.  It  was  “more  turbulent,”  the  gov- 
ernor and  council  said,  “ than  any  which  had  preceded.”  They  paid  very 
little  attention  to  the  unlawful  requirements  of  the  chief  magistrates,  and 
boldly  discussed  the  rights  of  citizens.  To  check  this  stimulant  to  repub- 
licanism, the  governor  and  council  determined  to  dissolve  the  Assembly. 
The  people  resented  the  attempt  to  interfere  with  the  privileges  of  their 
representatives,  and  flew  to  arms.  They  were  on  the  verge  of  open  insurrec- 
tion, when  the  news  came  over  the  sea  that  King  James  had  been  driven 
from  the  throne,  and  it  was  occupied  by  his  daughter  Mary  and  her  hus- 
band William  of  Orange. 

The  revolution  in  England  which  placed  William  and  Mary  on  the  throne 
had  such  an  important  bearing  upon  the  colonial  history  of  our  country, 
that  a brief  outline  of  its  principal  events  is  necessary  for  a clear  understand- 
ing of  that  bearing.  That  revolution  had  been  gathering  head  ever  since, 
soon  after  James’s  accession  to  the  throne,  it  became  evident  that  he  con- 
templated the  overthrow  of  the  constitutional  system  of  England,  and  the 
restoration  of  the  Roman  Catholic  religion  and  polity  there  as  they  existed 
at  the  accession  of  Henry  the  Eighth.  By  a series  of  crimes  and  blunders, 
the  king,  in  less  than  three  years,  had  arrayed  all  of  his  subjects  against  him 
excepting  the  Roman  Catholics  and  a few  pliant  dissenters.  The  foreign 
policy  of  the  government  was  made  subservient  to  France,  then  ruled  by 
Louis  the  Fourteenth,  a kinsman  of  James. 

In  the  summer  of  1688,  a crisis  occurred.  The  king  had  ordered  a decla- 
ration of  indulgence  to  be  read  in  all  the  churches.  The  order  shocked  the 
Protestant  sentiment  of  England,  and  met  with  strenuous  opposition.  The 
Archbishop  of  Canterbury  and  six  bishops  were  sent  to  the  Tower  on  a 
charge  of  libel,  because  they  ventured  to  petition  the  king  against  the  order. 
This  outrage  shook  English  society  to  its  foundations,  with  the  most  intense 
excitement.  The  prelates  were  acquitted,  yet  the  excitement  continued ; 
and  in  obedience  to  what  was ‘undoubtedly  the  common  wish  of  Protest- 
ant England,  some  of  the  leading  peers  and  prelates  of  the  realm  invited 
Prince  William  of  Orange  to  invade  England  and  dethrone  the  Stuart. 
William  was  the  husband  of  Princess  Mary,  the  eldest  daughter  of  King 
James,  and  both  were  Protestants. 


326 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  III. 


William  accepted  the  invitation,  and  on  the  5th  of  November,  1688,  he 
landed  at  Torbay,  with  fifteen  thousand  troops.  The  friends  of  James  all 
deserted  him — even  his  daughter  Anne,  the  wife  of  Prince  George  of  Den- 
mark. James  fled  to  France,  and  William  called  a convention  of  the 
notables  of  England  to  settle  the  momentous  questions  of  the  future  mon- 
archy. In  February,  1689,  William  and  Mary  were  proclaimed  joint  mon- 
archs  of  England,  and  their  effigies,  or  profiles  of  their  faces,  were  placed 
together  on  the  coins  of  England.  To  this  the  couplet  refers  in  speaking  of 
lovers 

“ cooing  and  billing, 

Like  William  and  Mary  on  a shilling.” 

The  detested  and  detestable  Stuart  dynasty  now  disappeared  forever. 
Higher  political  principles  were  diffused  through  English  society.  A decla- 
ration of  the  rights  and  liberties  of  the  subject  was  made  by  the  British  Par- 
liament at  the  accession  of  the  new  sovereigns ; and  from  that  time  the 
people  of  the  realm  had  a more  direct  and  controlling  participation  in  the 
administration  of  the  public  affairs  of  the  realm,  than  even  in  the  time  of 
the  Commonwealth  and  Cromwell.  The  salutary  influence  of  that  great 
change  in  the  English  government  and  policy  upon  the  destinies  of  the 
English-American  colonies  was  remarkable.  From  the  period  of  that  revo- 
lution, to  the  beginning  of  the  French  and  Indian  War  at  the  middle  of  the 
eighteenth  century,  the  history  of  Virginia  is  the  story  of  the  steady,  quiet 
progress  of  an  industrious  people,  who  were  ready  in  “the  fullness  of  time” 
to  join  with  other  colonies  in  the  establishment  of  a great  republic. 


CHAPTER  III. 


EXECUTIVE  GOVERNMENT  OF  NEW  NETHERLAND — TROUBLES  WITH  INDIANS — DUTCH  INDIA  COM- 
PANIES— ADMIRAL  HEYN  AND  HIS  MOTHER — A NEW  SCHEME  OF  COLONIZATION — GOVERNOR 
VAN  TWILLER — INTERCOURSE  WITH  VIRGINIA — DE  VRIES  IN  VIRGINIA  AND  AT  NEW  AMSTER- 
DAM— VAN  TWILLER’S  folly — PLAIN  TALK  BY  A PARSON  AND  SHERIFF — GOVERNOR  KIEFT 
AND  HIS  ADMINISTRATION  — COVETOUSNESS  OF  THE  PATROONS  — MONOPOLY  REBUKED  — 
FARMERS  IN  NEW  NETHERLAND— NEW  ENGLAND  INTRUDERS — TROUBLES  WITH  THE  INDIANS — 
FIRST  POPULAR  ASSEMBLY— MASSACRE  OF  INDIANS  AT  HOBOKEN — RETALIATION. 


foundations  of  justice,  liberty,  equality  and  fraternity,  with  its  capital  on  the 
site  of  the  city  of  New  York. 

We  have  seen  hovv  refugees  from  persecution  in  France,  and  native  Hol- 
landers, first  made  settlements  on  Manhattan  Island  and  elsewhere,  and  so 
established  the  colony  of  New  Netherland,  and  founded  a city  which  they 
called  New  Amsterdam,  with  Peter  Minuit  as  director-general  or  governor. 
Minuit  was  an  energetic  man  from  Wesel,  in  Rhenish  Prussia,  where  he  had 
been  a deacon  in  the  Walloon  or  French  Refugee  Church,  and  had  good 
family  connections.  He  was  assisted,  we  have  observed  in  Chapter  IV  of 
the  Second  Book,  by  a council  appointed  by  the  Dutch  West  India  Com- 
pany. Also  by  a secretary  who  was  the  bookkeeper  of  the  Company,  and  a 
sheriff  who  was  also  the  manager  of  the  revenues  of  the  province.  These 
several  officers  composed  the  executive  government  of  New  Netherland  ; its 
laws  derived  their  life  from  Holland,  and  were  subservient  to  the  supposed 
interests  of  the  Company.  The  first  commissary  or  chief  secretary  was 
Isaac  de  Rasieres,  already  mentioned  as  a correspondent  with  the  Pilgrim 
and  Puritan  authorities  in  New  England. 

The  intercourse  between  the  Dutch  and  Indians  was  friendly  for  some 
time.  The  Hollanders  had  extended  their  traffic  as  far  north  as  the  upper 
waters  of  the  Hudson,  and  built  a military  work  on  the  site  of  Albany  which 
they  called  Fort  Orange.  Eight  families  had  settled  there  and  begun  to 
cultivate  the  land,  when  the  Mohawk  Indians  on  one  side  of  the  river  and 


HIDE  the  English  were  laying  the  foundations  of  a flourishing 
commonwealth  in  Virginia  on  the  broad  basis  of  republicanism, 
the  Dutch  were  busy  fashioning  a state  upon  the  still  broader 


22 


328 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  III. 


the  Mohegans  on  the  other,  both  friendly  with  the  Dutch,  quarreled  and 
went  to  war.  The  commander  of  the  fort  foolishly  joined  the  Mohegans  in 
an  expedition  against  the  Mohawks  in  violation  of  the  treaty  made  at  Tawa- 
sentha.  They  were  met  by  the  fierce  Iroquois,  and  in  a battle  with  them, 
the  Dutch  commander  and  three  of  his  men  were  slain,  with  many  of  the 
Mohegans.  The  settlers  at  Fort  Orange  were  terrified,  and  were  about  to 
flee  to  Manhattan  in  their  boats,  when  Barentsten,  a very  popular  trader, 
arrived,  and  received  a deputation  of  Mohawks,  who  came  to  justify  their 
deed.  “ We  have  done  nothing  against  the  white  people,”  they  said  ; “ why 
did  they  meddle  with  us?  Had  it  been  otherwise,  this  would  not  have  hap- 
pened from  us.”  The  position  was  considered  unsafe,  and  the  eight  families, 
with  every  woman  in  the  garrison,  were  removed  to  New  Amsterdam.  That 
was  in  the  year  1626. 

Now  followed  the  correspondence  and  personal  intercourse  between  the 
Dutch  on  Manhattan  and  the  Puritans  in  New  England  mentioned  in 
Chapter  VI  of  the  Second  Book.  During  that  time,  and  until  1628,  wars 
between  the  Indians  on  the  upper  Hudson  caused  Fort  Orange  to  remain 
only  a military  and  trading  post,  for  settlers  would  not  venture  much  beyond 
the  bounds  of  Manhattan  Island.  But  while  the  extension  of  settlements 
in  New  Netherland  was  thus  checked  by  the  hostilities  of  two  savage  nations, 
and  the  general  prosperity  of  the  colony  was  somewhat  depressed,  the  Dutch 
West  India  Company  were  reaping  a rich  harvest  of  wealth  and  honors  from 
the  circumstances  of  war  between  Christian  nations — Holland,  Spain  and 
Portugal.  Its  battle-ships  depredated  fiercely  and  successfully  upon  the 
floating  commerce  of  those  kingdoms  of  the  Peninsula.  The  fleets  of  the 
two  India  companies  were  then  the  right  arm  of  Dutch  power  and  con- 
trolled the  state. 

Peter  Petersen  Heyn,  who  had  risen  from  the  position  of  a peasant  boy 
to  that  of  a distinguished  naval  commander,  captured  for  the  Company,  in 
1629,  the  Spanish  “Silver  Fleet”  while  on  its  way  from  Yucatan  with  the 
spoils  of  the  mines  of  Mexico  and  Peru.  He  put  about  five  million  dollars 
of  treasure  into  their  coffers.  The  joy  of  tlie  people  of  Holland  was 
unbounded  when  the  news  reached  Amsterdam.  The  reception  of  the 
victor  there  was  princely  in  its  display.  He  was  conducted  into  the  Assem- 
bly Chamber  of  the  States-General  at  the  Hague,  and  there  received  the 
thanks  of  the  nation  publicly.  He  asked  for  no  share  of  the  booty  he  had 
won  ; and  when  the  commission  of  Admiral  was  offered  him,  he  refused  it, 
saying : “ It  is  too  great  a dignity  for  one  of  so  mean  birth  and  unpolished 
manners  to  possess.”  It  was  forced  upon  him,  and  he  went  forth  to  win 
other  victories.  The  next  year,  while  fighting  two  Dunkirk  pirates,  with  his 


Chap.  III. 


THE  FEUDAL  SYSTEM  IN  NEW  YORK. 


329 


ship  between  them,  he  was  killed  on  the  deck  of  his  vessel.  His  body  was 
conveyed  in  regal  pomp  to  the  old  church  at  Delft,  wherein  the  Pilgrim 
fathers  had  worshipped  on  the  shores  of  Holland ; and  he  was  buried  by  the 
side  of  Prince  William  of  Orange.  His  grateful  government  erected  over 
his  remains  under  the  great  aisle  a superb  marble  monument.  When  the 
States-General  sent  a letter  of  condolence  to  his  peasant  mother  by  the 
hand  of  a high  officer,  she  said  : “ Aye,  I thought  that  would  be  the  end  of 
him.  He  was  always  a vagabond  ; but  I did  my  best  to  correct  him.  He 
has  got  no  more  than  he  deserved.” 

Compared  with  other  sources  of  wealth,  the  profits  derived  from  New 
Netherland  now  seemed  insignificant  to  the  Company,  and  they  devised  new 
schemes  for  increasing  the  value  of  the  province.  Nothing  seemed  wiser 
than  an  increase  in  the  population  ; so  they  adopted  the  plan  of  making 
separate  and  independent  colonies  on  the  Hudson  and  Delaware  rivers,  in 
the  form  of  manorial,  estates  not  more  than  sixteen  miles  in  length  if  lying 
on  one  side  of  a river,  or  eight  miles  if  on  both  sides,  as  we  have  observed 
on  page  267.  They  were  to  be  fashioned  after  then  existing  manors  in  Hol- 
land and  England.  In  order  to  enlist  private  capital  in  this  undertaking, 
the  College  of  XIX  proposed  to  give  a charter  which  should  confer  those 
“ patroon  ” privileges  and  exemptions  mentioned  on  the  page  above  referred 
to.  This  proposition  was  approved  by  the  States-General  in  1630;  and  so 
the  feudal  system  displayed  by  the  manorial  estates  in  Holland  and  England 
was  transferred  to  America. 

Governor  Minuit  returned  to  Amsterdam  in  1632,  leaving  the  province 
in  a state  of  increasing  prosperity.  The  fur  trade  was  enlarging.  Comfort- 
able homes  and  commodious  warehouses  were  seen  clustered  around  Fort 
Amsterdam,  and  gardens  were  blooming  around  many  dwellings.  He  was 
succeeded  the  following  year  by  Walter  Van  Twiller,  a narrow-minded  and 
inexperienced  clerk  in  the  Company’s  warehouse  at  Amsterdam,  who  had 
married  the  niece  of  the  rich  pearl-merchant  Killian  Van  Rensselaer,  cne  of 
the  directors.  Van  Twiller  seems  to  have  had  very  little  fitness  for  the 
position  of  governor  of  the  colony,  excepting  the  alacrity  with  which  he 
would  be  likely  to  serve  the  interests  of  his  wife’s  rich  kinsman,  who  had 
become  a “ patroon  ” and  whose  estate  lay  on  each  side  of  the  upper  Hudson, 
at  the  site  of  Albany  and  its  surroundings.  He  had  been  employed  by  the 
“ patroon  ” in  shipping  cattle  to  his  colony,  and  was  pretty  well  versed  in  the 
mysteries  of  traffic.  But  he  was  entirely  ignorant  of  public  affairs,  and  had 
not  a single  quality  of  a statesman.  He  was  one  of  those  sleek,  rotund, 
bullet-headed  Dutchmen  who  had  ease  of  mind  and  body ; dull  of  intellect, 
yet  shrewd  and  cunning ; courageous  when  there  was  no  danger ; always 


330 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  111. 


undecided  and  wavering,  and  was  a capital  butt  for  the  jokes  of  the  wiser 
men  of  New  Amsterdam.  Irving  has  left  us  a spirited  caricature  of  his 
person,  as  a “ model  of  majesty  and  lordly  grandeur.”  The  chronicler  says: 
“ He  was  exactly  five  feet  six  inches  in  height,  and  six  feet  five  inches  in 
circumference.  His  head  was  a perfect  sphere,  and  of  such  stupendous 
dimensions  that  dame  Nature,  with  all  her  sex’s  ingenuity,  would  have  been 
puzzled  to  construct  a neck  capable  of  supporting  it ; wherefore  she  wisely 
declined  the  attempt,  and  settled  it  firmly  on  the  top  of  his  backbone  just 
between  his  shoulders.  His  legs  were  very  short,  but  sturdy  in  proportion 

to  the  weight  they  had  to  sus- 
tain ; so  that,'  when  erect,  he 
had  not  a little  the  appearance 
of  a beer-barrel  on  skids.  His 
face,  that  infallible  index  of  the 
mind,  presented  a vast  expanse 
unfurrowed  by  any  of  those  lines 
and  angles  which  disfigure  the 
human  countenance  with  what  is 
termed  expression.  Two  small 
grey  eyes  twinkled  feebly  in  the 
midst,  like  two  stars  of  lesser 
magnitude  in  a hazy  firmament ; 
and  his  full-fed  cheeks,  which 
seemed  to  have  taken  toll  of 
everything  that  went  into  his 
mouth,  were  curiously  mottled 
and  streaked  with  dusky  red,  like 
a Spitzenberg  apple.  His  habits 
were  as  regular  as  his  person. 
He  daily  took  his  four  stated 
meals,  appropriating  exactly  an 
hour  to  each  ; he  smoked  and 
doubted  eight  hours,  and  he  slept 

the  remaining  twelve  of  the  four-and-twenty.” 

Van  Twiller’s  administration  lasted  about  four  years,  and  the  colony 
flourished  in  spite  of  him.  Just  before  his  advent,  a pleasant  intercourse 
was  opened  with  Virginia  by  Captain  de  Vries,  one  of  the  “ patroons,”  who 
had  an  estate  on  the  South  or  Delaware  River,  where  he  and  others 
attempted  to  establish  a whale  fishery.  It  did  not  succeed;  but  De  Vries 
made  valuable  explorations  up  the  river  and  formed  salutary  relations  with 


GOVERNOR  VAN  TWILLEK. 


Chap.  III. 


DE  VRIES  AT  JAMESTOWN. 


331 


the  natives.  He  finally  sailed  for  Virginia  for  supplies,  rightfully  supposing 
that  he  would  find  corn  more  abundant  there  than  at  New  Amsterdam.  He 
was  anxious,  too,  to  be  the  first  Hollander  from  New  Netherland  to  enter 
the  James  River.  As  his  vessel  neared  the  shore  at  Jamestown,  and  dis- 
played the  flag  of  Holland,  Sir  John,  Harvey,  then  Governor  of  Virginia, 
came  down  to  the  beach  with  some  halberdiers,  and  in  a friendly  tone 
demanded  where  he  was  from.  “ From  the  South  Bay  in  New  Netherlands,” 
said  Captain  De  Vries.  The  governor  invited  him  to  his  house,  presented 
him  with  a glass  of  “ Venice  sack,”  and  then  taking  an  English  chart,  pointed 
out  South  Bay  as  named  Delaware  in  honor  of  Lord  De  La  Ware  (a  former 
governor  of  Virginia),  who,  some  years  before,  had  been  driven  into  that  bay. 
Finding  it  full  of  shoals  and  supposing  it  to  be  unnavigable,  the  English, 
Harvey  said,  had  “ not  looked  after  it  since.  Yet  it  is  our  king’s  land,” 
he  continued,  “and  not  New  Netherland.” 

De  Vries  then  gave  the  governor  a glowing  account  of  the  beauty  of  the 
Delaware  Bay  and  river,  only  a hundred  miles  north  from  Jamestown,  and  a 
history  of  what  the  Dutch  had  been  doing  there.  Harvey  w'as  astonished. 
He  had  heard  that  the  Dutch  had  built  a fort  upon  “ Hudson’s  River,  as  the 
English  call  it but,  being  uncertain  whether  there  was  a Delaware  Bay  or 
river,  had  sent  a small  vessel,  with  several  seamen,  the  previous  autumn  to 
search  for  them.  These  men  had  not  returned,  and  he  supposed  they  had 
gone  to  the  bottom  of  the  sea  in  a storm.  De  Vries  told  him  that  he  had 
seen  Indians  with  English  j’ackets  on,  and  had  no  doubt  his  seamen  had  been 
murdered  by  them. 

No  dispute  arose  about  the  territory.  “There  are  lands  enough,”  said 
the  knight  ; “ we  shall  be  friends  and  good  neighbors  with  each  other.  You 
will  have  no  trouble  from  us  Englishmen,  if  only  those  of  New  England  do 
not  approach  too  near  you,  and  dwell  at  a distance  from  you.”  So  began  a 
pleasant  intercourse  between  New  Netherland  and  Virginia.  Sir  John’s 
half-formed  warning  was  prophetic,  for  from  New  England  came  encroach- 
ments and  annoyances  to  the  Dutch. 

De  Vries  sailed  for  the  Delaware  with  an  ample  supply  of  provisions  and 
some  goats  as  a present  from  Sir  John  to  the  governor  of  New  Netherland. 
He  found  his  affairs  on  the  Delaware  far  from  prosperous;  so  he  abandoned 
the  country  to  the  Indians  and  sailed  into  the  harbor  of  New  Amsterdam, 
where  lay  the  ship  which  had  just  brought  over  Governor  Van  Twiller.  It 
was  well  for  the  Company  that  a man  of  pluck  like  De  Vries  was  at  New 
Amsterdam  at  that  time,  for  a former  commissary  at  Fort  Orange,  Jacob 
Elkens,  came  a few  days  after  De  Vries’s  arrival,  in  the  English  ship  Williafn, 
with  the  intention  of  going  up  the  Hudson  to  trade  with  the  Indians. 


332 


OUR  COUNTRY, 


Book  III. 


Elkens  knew  Van  Twiller  at  Amsterdam,  and  counted  on  his  impotence. 
When  the  governor  demanded  his  papers,  he  refused,  saying : “ The  country 
belongs  to  England,  for  it  was  discovered  by  an  Englishman.  I command 
an  English  ship  and  will  go  where  I please.”  Van  Twiller  ordered  the 
Orange  flag  to  be  run  up  over  Fort  Amsterdam,  and  a salute  of  three  guns 
to  be  fired  in  honor  of  Prince  Maurice.  Elkens  displayed  the  British  flag  on 
the  William,  and  fired  a salute  of  three  guns  in  honor  of  King  Charles,  “ I 
will  go  up  the  river  if  it  costs  me  my  life,”  said  Elkens,  and  weighing  anchor 
he  boldly  sailed  up  the  Hudson. 

This  audacious  act  aroused  the  wrath  of  Van  Twiller.  He  opened  a cask 
of  wine  at  the  gate  of  the  fort,  assembled  the  people  there,  drank  a full 
glass  himself  and  called  upon  those  who  loved  him  and  their  prince  to  follow 
his  example  and  assist  in  protecting  him  from  the  violence  which  the  Eng- 
lishman had  committed.  The  people  drank  his  wine  but  laughed  in  his  face, 
for  the  William  was  out  of  sight.  De  Vries  dined  with  the  governor  the 
same  day,  and  told  him  plainly  that  he  had  played  the  fool.  He  advised 
Van  Twiller  to  send  an  expedition  after  the  intruder,  which  the  stupid  gover- 
nor did,  and  very  soon  Elkens  was  sent  to  sea  with  an  injunction  not  to 
attempt  any  further  interference  with  the  Dutch  on  the  Hudson. 

The  province  yet  lacked  a prime  element  of  permanent  prosperity. 
There  were  no  independent  farmers  in  New  Netherland  cultivating  their 
own  land.  The  wealthy  monopolists  owned  the  land  ; the  tiller  might  own 
the  house  he  lived  in — no  more.  A great  incentive  to  industry  was  wanting. 
Large  tracts  of  land,  accessible  and  fertile,  were  left  uncultivated.  There 
were  continued  disputes  between  the  grasping  patroons  and  the  agents  of 
the  Company  concerning  the  monopoly  of  the  fur-trade,  which  each  was 
seeking  to  secure.  The  governor  had  lost  the  respect  of  all  parties,  and  was 
simply  a clog  to  progress.  Parson  Bogardus,  who  came  over  with  him  from 
Holland,  called  him  a “ child  of  the  devil  ” to  his  face ; and  he  also  told 
him,  on  one  occasion,  that  if  he  did  not  behave  himself  he  would  give  him 
such  a “ shake  from  the  pulpit  ” the  next  Sabbath  as  would  make  him 
tremble  like  a bowl  of  jelly.  Lubbertus  Van  Dincklagen,  his  sheriff,  and 
one  of  the  most  learned  men  in  the  colony,  spoke  contemptuously  of  him  to 
his  face,  when  the  governor,  unfortunately  for  himself,  summoned  courage 
sufficient  to  resent  it,  and  sent  the  offender  to  Holland  in  disgrace,  without 
paying  him  three  years’  salary  which  was  due  him.  Dincklagen  was  expert 
with  his  tongue  and  pen,  and  he  made  such  representations  of  the  character 
of  Van  Twiller  in  a memorial  to  the  States-General  of  Holland,  that  he  was 
finally  recalled.  It  was  a sad  interruption  of  Van  Twiller’s  sweet  dream  of 
peace.  He  had  bought  Nutten  and  other  islands  near  Manhattan,  with  the 


Chap.  III. 


GOVERNOR  KIEFT’S  ADMINISTRATION. 


333 


expectation  of  vegetating  in  riches  and  dying  there.  He  has  left  no  memo- 
rial of  his  name  upon  anything.  There  is  a simple  reminder  of  him  in  the 
present  Nutten  Island,  lying  nearest  the  “ Battery  ” in  New  York  Bay,  which 
is  known  as  the  Governor’s  Island. 

In  1637,  Van  Twiller  was  succeeded  by  William  Kieft,  whose  portrait 
had  been  hanged  on  a gallows  at  Rochelle  at  one  time.  De  Vries  recorded 
him  among  the  great  rogues.  Spiteful,  rapacious,  energetic ; fond  of  quar- 
rels and  never  happy  excepting  when  in  trouble  with  some  one ; unscrupu- 
lous in  the  use  of  means  to  promote  his  own  interest,  and  a petty  tyrant,  he 
was,  nevertheless,  a better  man  for  the  Company  than  Van  Twiller.  He 
was  an  agitator,  and  agitation  is  healthier  than  stagnation. 

Kieft’s  administration  was  stormy,  and  therefore  a delightful  one  for  him. 
He  had  regarded  Minuit  as  a model  governor,  and  Minuit,  for  a long  time, 
was  the  bane  of  Kieft’s  official  peace  and  quiet.  The  next  governor  had 
hardly  become  seated  in  the  executive  chair,  when  tidings  reached  him  that 
Minuit  had  led  a colony  of  Swedes  to  the  Delaware.  Then  news  came  that 
the  impertinent  Swedes,  having  built  a house  between  two  trees,  claimed  the 
whole  country  west  of  the  Delaware  from  its  falls  at  Trenton  to  Cape  Hen- 
lopen  and  as  far  inland  as  they  pleased.  Kieft  stormed  at  first,  and  then 
issued  a proclamation,  as  we  have  observed,  protesting  against  this  invasion 
of  the  territory  of  New  Netherland. 

Kieft  began  his  administration  by  concentrating  all  executive  power  in 
his  own  hands ; and  he  and  his  council  had  such  dignity,  in  their  own  estima- 
tion, that  it  became  a high  crime  to  appeal  from  their  decision.  While 
shaking  his  official  fist  at  the  Swedes  and  threatening  war,  he  was  not 
unmindful  of  the  wants  of  the  growing  capital  of  the  colony.  He  found 
public  affairs  in  a wretched  condition,  and  needing  the  strong  hand  of  an 
autocrat  to  bring  order  out  of  confusion.  Abuses  everywhere  abounded,  and 
he  set  about  reforming  them  with  a vigor  that  very  soon  almost  stripped  the 
citizen  of  privileges.  He  caused  Fort  Amsterdam  to  be  repaired,  and  new 
warehouses  to  be  erected.  By  example  and  command  he  made  fruit-trees  to 
bud  and  blossom  in  gardens  where  brambles  had  flourished.  Police  ordi- 
nances were  framed  and  thoroughly  enforced.  Religion  and  morality  were 
fostered  for  a time,  and  ordained  ministers  conducted  public  worship.  A 
spacious  stone  church  was  built  within  the  fort ; and  it  was  a gala  day  in 
New  Amsterdam  when  the  Connecticut  architect  hung  the  Spanish  bells 
captured  at  Porto  Rico  in  the  little  tower,  and  the  governor  gave  a supper 
to  the  builders  and  the  city  magistrates.  It  was  a proud  day  for  Parson 
Bogardus  when  he  ascended  the  new  pulpit  and  preached  in  the  presence  of 
Englishmen  from  Puritan  New  England  and  Cavalier  Virginia.  When,  after 


334 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  III. 


long  absence,  De  Vries  returned  to  Manhattan,  he  saw  much  to  praise  in  the 
management  of  the  new  governor.  These  are  some  of  the  brighter  tints  in 
the  picture  of  Kieft’s  career. 

A change  for  the  better  was  wrought  by  the  States-General  in  1638. 
The  Company  had  pursued  the  unwise  policy  of  peopling  the  province  with 
its  own  dependants.  The  States-General  and  some  of  the  wise  directors 
saw  that  this  was  a capital  error.  A proposition  was  made  to  the  Company 
to  place  the  control  of  New  Netherland  in  the  care  of  the  States-General, 
making  it  a colony  of  Holland  instead  of  the  possession  of  a commercial 
monopoly.  It  would  have  been  a salutary  measure  for  the  colony,  but  the 
Company  were  not  disposed  to  surrender  their  control.  Meanwhile  the 
grasping  patroons  had  asked  the  States-General  to  enlarge  their  privileges 
and  exemptions,  by  allowing  them  to  monopolize  more  territory;  have  a 
longer  time  to  settle  colonists  ; enjoy  free  trade  throughout  and  around  New 
Netherland ; be  invested  with  greater  feudal  powers  so  as  to  be  independent 
of'  the  Company  in  their  control  of  the  government  of  their  respective 
manors ; have  a vote  in  the  council  of  the  governor  and  to  be  supplied  with 
convicts  from  Holland  as  servile  laborers,  and  with  negro  slaves.  They 
actually  asked  that  all  “ private  persons  ” and  poor  emigrants  should  be  for- 
bidden to  purchase  lands  from  the  Indians,  and  should  be  required  to  settle 
themselves  within  the  manors  and  under  the  jurisdiction  of  the  great  mano- 
rial lords. 

This  scheme  for  monopolizing  all  the  lands  of  the  province  by  a few 
wealthy  men,  and  making  the  “ common  people  ” mere  serfs  on  the  manorial 
estates,  was  so  offensive  to  the  States-General  that  they  were  disposed  to 
abridge  the  privileges  enjoyed  by  the  patroons.  They  compelled  the  Com- 
pany to  throw  open  the  internal  trade  of  the  province  to  free  competition 
for  all  inhabitants  of  Holland,  under  restrictions;  and  the  governor  of  New 
Netherland  was  instructed  to  accommodate  every  emigrant  with  as  much 
land  as  he  and  his  family  might  properly  cultivate,  such  grantee  paying  a 
quit-rent  to  the  Company  of  one-tenth  of  all  produce. 

This  more  liberal  policy  stimulated  emigration  from  Holland  and  gave  a 
powerful  impulse  to  the  prosperity  of  the  colony.  Private  enterprise  and 
industry  were  left  free  for  development  and  expansion.  Emigrants  pressed 
into  Amsterdam  to  seek  opportunities  to  go  to  New  Netherland.  The  Com- 
pany, enamored  of  the  new  policy,  wisely  offered  a free  passage  and  other 
inducements  to  respectable  farmers.  A good  class  of  citizens  soon  sought 
homes  in  New  Netherland — men  of  culture  and  fortune.  Among  them 
came  De  Vries,  with  emigrants,  and  planted  a colony  on  Staten  Island. 
Strangers  came  from  New  England  and  Virginia,  for  there  was  freedom  of 


Chap.  III. 


ENCROACHMENTS  OF  NEW  ENGLANDERS. 


335 


conscience  in  the  Dutch  dominions.  The  only  obligation  required  from 
strangers  was  an  oath  of  fidelity  and  allegiance  to  their  High  Mightinesses 
the  States-General  of  Holland. 

In  view  of  the  increasing  demand  for  homesteads,  Governor  Kieft  pur- 
chased from  the  Indians  nearly  the  whole  of  the  present  Queens  county  on 
Long  Island,  and  the  lower  part  of  Westchester  county.  Meanwhile  the 
New  Englanders  had  become  as  troublesome  in  their  territorial  encroach- 
ments, as  the  Swedes  on  the  Delaware.  Like  busy  ants  they  were  spreading 
over  the  fertile  country  westward  of  the  Housatonic  River.  At  the  mouth 
of  that  stream  they  had  planted  the  flourishing  village  of  Stratford,  and 
they  had  made  settlements  at  Norwalk  and  Greenwich.  It  being  evident 
that  the  New  Englanders  intended  to  push  their  settlements  to  the  Hudson 
River,  Kieft,  in  1640,  purchased  of  the  Indians  all  the  islands  near  Norwalk 
and  the  domain  westward,  which  comprised  nearly  the  whole  of  Westchester 
county,  and  raised  thereon,  at  Cow  Bay,  the  arms  of  the  States-General. 
For  awhile  the  New  Englanders  disregarded  Indian  title-deeds  and  Dutch 
proclamations;  and  fillibusters  from  Connecticut  cut  down  the  arms  of  Hol- 
land and  mocked  the  officials  at  New  Amsterdam.  But  they  soon  learned 
that  Kieft  was  a more  energetic  man  than  Van  Twiller,  who  had  excited 
their  contempt.  The  new  governor  soon  put  a stop  to  these  encroachments, 
and  compelled  the  settlers  on  the  newly-purchased  domain  to  take  an  oath 
of  allegiance  to  the  States-General. 

Had  Kieft’s  policy  and  conduct  been  as  wise  and  just  as  it  was  firm  and 
energetic,  his  administration  might  have  been  marked  by  peace  and  great 
prosperity.  But  he  pursued  a policy  toward  the  Indians  which  inflamed  whole 
tribes  with  resentment  against  the  Dutch.  His  partiality  for  the  Mohawks, 
with  whom  the  Dutch  came  in  immediate  contact  at  Fort  Orange,  excited  the 
jealousy  of  the  River  Indians.  Their  anger  was  also  kindled  by  the  bad  con- 
duct of  dishonest  traders,  who  sold  them  rum  and  cheated  them  in  traffic 
while  they  were  intoxicated.  Kieft’s  avarice  having  obtained  the  mastery  of 
his  justice,  he  winked  at  these  offences  and  shared  in  the  plunder.  He  also 
exacted  tribute  of  furs,  corn  and  wampum  from  the  tribes  around  Manhat- 
tan ; but  when  they  came  with  the  costly  offerings  and  cast  them  at  the  feet 
of  the  oppressor,  they  turned  away  with  a bitter  curse  against  the  Hollanders. 

Kieft  saw  that  a cloud  of  vengeance  was  gathering,  and  his  fears  awakened 
his  cruelty.  With  the  instinct  of  a bad  nature,  he  sought  to  further  injure 
those  whom  he  had  wronged.  Some  swine  had  been  stolen  by  white  people 
from  De  Vries’s  plantation  on  Staten  Island.  The  governor  charged  the 
innocent  Raritans  of  New  Jersey  with  the  crime  and  sent  an  armed  force  to 
chastise  them,  with  a belief  that  a show  of  power  would  disarm  the  ven- 


336 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  III. 


geance  of  the  savages.  Several  Indians  were  killed.  The  event  was  the  fore- 
shadowing of  the  fate  of  others  ; and  ail  the  neighboring  tribes  were  aroused, 
and  prepared  for  war.  The  River  Indians  refused  to  pay  tribute  any  longer. 
The  Raritans  murdered  Hollanders  whenever  they  met  them  in  the  forests 
of  New  Jersey,  and  the  innocent  settlement  on  Staten  Island  was  ruined  by 
them.  The  Raritans  were  outlawed,  and  a bounty  was  offered  for  the  head 
of  every  member  of  the  tribe. 

Fifteen  or  twenty  years  before,  some  of  Minuit’s  men  had  murdered  an 
Indian  belonging  to  a tribe  seated  beyond  the  Harlem  River.  His  nephew, 
then  a boy,  who  saw  the  outrage  and  made  a vow  of  vengeance,  had  now 
grown  to  be  a lusty  man.  He  proceeded  to  execute  his  vow  by  murdering 
an  unoffending  Dutchman  in  his  wheelwright  shop  high  upon  Manhattan 


MURDER  OF  THE  DUTCH  WHEELWRIGHT. 


Island.  While  the  mechanic  was  stooping  over  his  chest  of  tools,  the  young 
Indian  seized  an  axe  and  almost  severed  his  head  from  his  body.  With  his 
scalp  and  the  plunder  of  his  dwelling,  the  savage  returned  in  triumph  to  his 
tribe.  Kieft  demanded  the  murderer,  but  his  chief  would  not  give  him  up, 
saying  he  had  been  revenged  according  to  the  customs  of  his  race. 

The  governor  determined  to  chastise  that  tribe  as  he  had  the  Raritans. 


Chap.  III. 


A COUNCIL  OF  TWELVE. 


337 


He  called  upon  the  people  to  shoulder  their  muskets  for  the  fray.  They 
saw  the  danger  to  which  the  rashness  of  Kieft  was  leading  them,  and  refused. 
They  had  been  witnesses  of  his  rapacity  and  greed,  and  they  now  charged 
him  with  seeking  war  that  he  might  “ make  a wrong  reckoning  with  the  Com- 
pany.” They  also  reproached  him  with  a selfish  cowardice.  “ It  is  all  well 
for  you,”  they  said,  “ who  have  not  slept  out  of  the  fort  a single  night  since 
you  came,  to  endanger  our  lives  and  our  homes  in  undefended  places.” 

This  bold  attitude  of  the  people  transformed  the  autocrat.  He  invited 
all  the  heads  of  families  in  New  Amsterdam  to  meet  him  in  convention  to 
consult  upon  public  affairs.  They  assembled  at  Fort  Amsterdam,  and 
promptly  chose  twelve  select  men  to  act  as  their  representatives.  So 
appeared  the  first  popular  assembly,  and  so  was  chosen  the  first  representa- 
tive congress  for  political  purposes,  in  New  Netherland.  So  were  planted 
the  seeds  of  a representative  democracy,  in  the  year  1641,  almost  on  the 
very  spot  where,  a century  and  a half  later,  our  Republic,  founded  upon 
similar  principles,  was  inaugurated,  when  Washington  took  the  oath  of  office 
as  first  President  of  the  United  States. 

De  Vries  was  chosen  president  of  the  Twelve.  To  that  body  Kieft  sub- 
mitted the  question  whether  the  murderer  of  the  wheelwright  ought  to  be 
demanded  of  his  chief,  and  whether,  in  case  of  the  chief’s  refusal,  the  Dutch 
ought  to  make  war  upon  his  tribe  and  burn  the  village  wherein  he  dwelt. 
The  Twelve  counselled  peace,  and  proceeded  to  consider  the  propriety  of 
establishing  in  New  Netherland  a government  similar  to  that  of  the  Father- 
land.  The  governor  was  alarmed  by  this  proposed  blow  at  his  absolute  rule 
in  the  colony,  and  he  cunningly  offered  a compromise.  He  agreed  to  make 
popular  concessions  if  the  Twelve  would  authorize  him  to  make  war  on  the 
offending  tribe  at  a proper  time.  They  foolishly  trusted  his  honor  and 
agreed  to  his  proposition.  Then  the  wily  governor  dissolved  them,  saying 
he  had  no  further  use  for  them,  and  forbade  any  popular  assemblage  there- 
after. 

Kieft  sent  an  expedition  against  the  offending  tribe  early  in  the  spring 
of  1642.  His  thirst  for  blood  was  disappointed  by  a treaty.  It  was  soon 
gratified,  however.  The  River  Indians  were  tributary  to  the  Mohawks,  and 
in  midwinter,  1643,  a large  party  of  these  Iroquois  came  down  to  collect,  by 
force  of  arms,  tribute  which  had  not  been  paid.  The  native  dwellers  along 
the  lower  Hudson,  five  hundred  in  number,  fled  before  the  invaders.  They 
took  refuge  with  the  Hackensacks  at  Hoboken,  and  craved  the  protection  of 
the  Dutch.  At  the  same  time  many  of  the  offending  Westchester  tribe  and 
others  fled  to  Manhattan  and  took  refuge  with  the  Hollanders.  The  humane 
De  Vries  proposed  to  make  this  an  occasion  for  establishing  a permanent 


338 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  111. 


peace  with  the  savages,  but  the  wicked' governor  and  some  leading  citizens, 
who  pretended  to  speak  for  the  people,  overruled  his  wisdom  and  mercy, 
and  it  was  made  the  occasion  for  treacherously  spilling  innocent  blood. 

On  a cold  night  late  in  February,  1643,  the  fugitives  at  Hoboken,  and 
those  at  “Corlaer’s  Hook,”  Manhattan,  were  slumbering  in  fancied  security. 
Without  provocation — without  the  shadow  of  an  excuse,  Kieft  sent  eighty 
Hollanders  to  murder  those  at  Hoboken,  and  a less  number  to  slay  those  at 
Corlaer’s  Hook.  Forty  of  those  at  the  Hook  were  massacred,  while  the 


MASSACRE  OF  INDIANS  AT  HOBOKEN. 


Hollanders,  who  had  stealthily  crossed  the  river  among  floating  ice,  were 
making  the  snows  at  Hoboken  crimson  with  the  blood  of  confiding  Indians, 
and  lighting  up  the  heavens  with  the  blaze  of  their  wigwams.  They  spared 
neither  age  nor  sex.  “ Warrior  and  squaw,  sachem  and  child,  mother  and 
babe,”  says  Brodhead,  “ were  alike  massacred.  Daybreak  scarcely  ended  the 
furious  slaughter.  Mangled  victims,  seeking  safety  in  the  thickets,  were 
driven  into  the  river ; and  parents  rushing  to  save  their  children,  whom  the 
soldiery  had  thrown  into  the  stream,  were  driven  back  into  the  waters  and 
drowned  before  the  eyes  of  their  unrelenting  murderers.”  Almost  a hun- 
dred of  the  dusky  people  perished  there. 


Chap.  III. 


TREACHERY  AVENGED. 


339 


De  Vries  watched  the  butchery  by  the  light  of  the  burning  wigwams 
from  the  ramparts  of  Fort  Amsterdam.  He  told  the  blood-thirsty  and 
cowardly  governor,  who  was  careful  to  remain  within  the  walls  of  the 
fortress,  that  he  had  now  commenced  the  ruin  of  the  colony.  Kieft  ridi- 
culed the  clemency  of  De  Vries;  and  when  the  soldiers  returned  to  the  fort 
next  morning,  with  thirty  prisoners  and  the  heads  of  several  Indians  upon 
pikes,  the  governor  shook  their  blood-smeared  hands  with  delight,  praised 
them  for  their  bravery,  and  made  each  of  them  a present. 

This  treachery  aroused  the  fiery  hatred  of  the  savages  far  and  near,  and 
a fierce  war  was  kindled.  The  mutual  animosities  of  tribes  disappeared,  and 
zeal  for  a common  cause  everywhere  prevailed.  Farms,  hamlets,  and  villages 
were  swept  away  by  the  broom  of  devastation.  The  white  people  were 
butchered  wherever  they  were  found  by  the  incensed  Indians.  The  Long 
Island  tribes,  hitherto  friendly,  joined  their  kindred  in  race,  and,  for  awhile, 
the  very  existence  of  the  Dutch  settlements  was  in  jeopardy.  For  two 
years  the  war  continued,  and  the  colony  was  on  the  verge  of  ruin. 

Kieft  was  frightened  by  the  fury  of  the  tempest  which  his  wickedness 
and  folly  had  raised,  and  he  humbly  asked  the  people  to  choose  a few  men, 
again,  to  act  as  his  counsellors.  Eight  were  chosen.  The  colonists  had  lost 
all  confidence  in  the  governor,  and  relied  wholly  upon  these  eight  citizens 
to  relieve  them  from  the  fearful  web  of  difficulties  in  which  they  were 
involved.  The  Council  of  Eight  possessed  no  legal  executive  power,  and 
their  plans  for  a pacification  of  the  Indians  were  often  frustrated  by  the 
faithless  Kieft.  Disorder  everywhere  prevailed,  and  there  appeared  no  hope 
of  relief  so  long  as  Kieft  was  governor.  In  obedience  to  the  wishes  of  the 
people,  the  Eight  sent  an  energetic  and  respectful  letter  to  the  States- 
General,  setting  forth  the  critical  condition  of  the  province,  and  asking  them 
to  recall  Kieft.  Their  prayer  was  granted ; and  there  was  much  rejoicing 
throughout  New  Netherland  when  the  despised  governor  sailed  for  Europe 
in  the  spring  of  1647.  The  vessel  in  which  Kieft  departed  was  richly  laden, 
and  bore  much  of  his  ill-gotten  wealth.  It  was  wrecked  on  the  coast  of 
Wales,  and  there  the  governor  and  his  treasure  perished. 


CHAPTER  IV. 


THE  GOVERNMENT  OF  NEW  NETHERLAND — PETER  STUYVESANT  APPOINTED  GOVERNOR — RECEPTION 
OF  STUYVESANT — HE  DEFINES  HIS  POLICY  BY  WORDS  AND  DEEDS — A REPRESENTATIVE  GOV- 
ERNMENT— STUYVESANT’S  vigorous  ADMINISTRATION — SETTLES  DISPUTES  WITH  CONNEC- 
TICUT— SPIRIT  OF  FREEDOM  COMBATTED  BY  STUYVESANT — THE  DUTCH  SIGH  FOR  THE  FREE- 
DOM OF  THE  ENGLISH — REVOLUTIONARY  PROCEEDINGS — POPULAR  REPRESENTATIVES — STUY- 
VESANT’S  pluck — THE  SWEDES  SUBDUED — TROUBLES  WITH  THE  INDIANS — NEW  NETHERLAND 
SURRENDERED  TO  THE  ENGLISH — THE  ENGLISH  RULE — THE  DUTCH  RE  POSSESS  AND  RE-SUR- 
RENDER THE  PROVINCE. 

The  College  of  XIX  changed  the  mode  of  government  in  New 
Netherland  in  the  spring  of  1645.  All  power  for  the  management 
of  the  public  concerns  of  the  colony  was  vested  in  a Supreme 
Council,  consisting  of  the  director-general  or  governor,  a lieutenant-governor, 
and  fiscal  or  treasurer.  At  that  time  Peter  Stuyvesant,  a brave  Dutch 
soldier,  who  had  served  gallantly  in  the  West  Indies  and  lost  a leg  in  an 
attack  upon  the  Portuguese  island  of  St.  Martin,  was  at  Amsterdam.  He 
had  been  governor  of  Curagoa,  in  which  capacity  he  had  shown  great  vigor 
and  wisdom.  The  loss  of  his  leg  compelled  him  to  return  to  Holland  for 
surgical  aid,  and  the  College  appointed  him  to  succeed  Kieft  as  governor  of 
New  Netherland.  He  was  then  forty-four  years  of  age;  strong  in  physical 
constitution  ; fond  of  official  show ; admiring  the  arbitrary  nature  of  military 
rule ; a thorough  disciplinarian,  and  a stern,  inflexible,  just  and  honest  man. 
Owing  to  disagreements  concerning  some  of  the  details  of  policy  in  the 
proposed  management  of  New  Netherland,  Stuyvesant  did  not  arrive  at 
Manhattan  until  late  in  May,  1647.  Meanwhile  the  inhabitants,  who  had 
been  informed  early  of  his  appointment,  openly  showed  their  dislike  of 
Governor  Kieft.  Dominie  Bogardus,  whom  the  governor  had  charged  with 
drunkenness  and  sedition,  denounced  Kieft  and  some  of  his  official  com- 
panions from  the  pulpit  as  men  who  thought  of  “ nothing  but  to  plunder  the 
property  of  others,  to  dismiss,  to  banish,  to  transport  to  Holland.”  To 
avoid  these  severe  censures,  they  absented  themselves  from  church,  and  the 
governor  encouraged  all  sorts  of  noisy  amusements  near  the  place  of  public 
worship  on  Sundays.  Drums  were  beaten  and  cannon  were  fired  in  the  fort 
in  which  the  church  was  situated,  while  the  people  were  worshipping ; and 


Chap.  IV. 


ARRIVAL  AND  RECEPTION  OF  STUYVESANT. 


341 


the  communicants  were  insulted.  The  quarrel  ended  only  when  Kieft  and 
Bogardus  left  for  Holland  in  the  same  ship  and  were  lost  on  the  coast  of 
Wales. 

Stuyvesant  came  with  the  commission  of  director-general  over  New 
Netherland  and  the  adjoining  places,  and  also  over  the  islands  of  Cura^oa, 
Buenaire,  Aruba,  and  their  dependencies.  He  was  accompanied  by  Lub- 
bertus  Van  Dincklagen,  who  had  caused  the  recall  of  Kieft,  as  vice-director 
or  lieutenant-governor.  They  landed  on  a fine  morning  in  the  presence  of 
all  the  people,  who  came  out  with  guns  and  received  them  with  shouts.  So 
vehement  was  their  welcome  that  nearly  all  the  breath  and  powder  of  the 
city  was  exhausted.  Stuyvesant  marched  to  the  fort  in  great  pomp,  dis- 


RECEPTION  OF  STUYVESANT  AT  NEW  AMSTERDAM. 


playing  a silver-mounted  wooden  leg  of  fine  workmanship.  After  keeping 
the  principal  inhabitants  who  went  to  welcome  him  waiting  for  several  hours 
bareheaded,  while  he  remained  covered,  “ as  if  he  were  the  Czar  of  Muscovy,” 
he  told  the  people  that  he  should  govern  them  “as  a father  his  children,  for 
the  advantage  of  the  chartered  West  India  Company,  and  these  burghers 
and  this  land.”  He  assured  them  that  justice  should  rule  ; at  the  same 
time,  he  asserted  the  exclusive  privileges  of  the  directorship,  and  frowned 
upon  every  expression  of  republican  sentiment.  He  declared  it  to  be  treason 
to  “petition  against  one’s  magistrates,  whether  there  be  cause  or  not;”  and 
he  defended  Kieft’s  conduct  in  rejecting  the  interference  of  the  Twelve, 
saying:  “ If  any  one  during  my  administration  shall  appeal,  I will  make  him 


342 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  III. 


a foot  shorter,  and  send  the  pieces  to  Holland,  and  let  him  appeal  in  that 
way.”  These  sentiments  made  the  people  suspect  that  the  new  governor 
would  be  an  inflexible  despot  instead  of  an  indulgent  father. 

Stuyvesant  was  despotic,  yet  honesty  and  wisdom  marked  all  his  acts. 
He  set  about  needed  reforms  with  great  vigor.  The  morals  of  the  people, 
the  sale  of  liquors  to  the  Indians,  the  support  of  religion  and  the  regulation 
of  trade,  commanded  his  attention  ; and  it  was  not  long  before  he  infused 
much  of  his  own  energy  into  the  community,  and  enterprise  took  the  place 
of  sluggishness.  His  foreign  policy  was  as  decided,  and  its  execution  was 
energetic.  He  sent  a protest  southward  to  the  offending  governor  of  the 
Swedes,  and  an  invitation  eastward  to  commissioners  of  New  England  to 
meet  him  for  the  adjustment  of  mutual  rights.  His  kindness  toward  the 
Indians  soon  won  their  confidence  and  friendship ; and  so  affectionate  was 
their  bearing  toward  him,  that  the  foolish  story  went  abroad  that  he  was 
forming  an  alliance  with  the  savages  to  exterminate  the  English. 

The  grand  principle  announced  by  the  founders  of  our  Republic,  that 
taxation  without  representation  is  tyranny,  had  prevailed  in  Holland  for  two 
centuries.  The  principle  was  favorable  to  the  growth  of  republicanism  in 
New  Netherland,  for  Stuyvesant  was  compelled  to  respect  it.  He  found  the 
finances  of  the  colony  in  such  a low  state  that  taxation  was  a necessity. 
He  dared  not  tax  the  people  without  their  consent,  for  fear  of  offending  the 
States-General ; so  he  called  a convention  of  citizens,  and  directed  them  to 
choose  eighteen  of  their  best  men,  of  whom  he  might  select  nine  as  repre- 
sentatives of  the  tax-payers,  who  should  form  a co-ordinate  branch  of  the 
local  government. 

Stuyvesant  was  careful  to  hedge  around  this  germ  of  representative  gov- 
ernment as  closely  as  possible,  with  restrictions.  The  first  Nine  were  to 
select  their  successors,  so  that  the  people  should  not  be  choosers  after  that ; 
and  the  governor  was  careful  to  hold  nearly  all  the  power  in  his  own  hands. 
But  the  Nine  were  far  more  potent  than  the  Twelve,  under  Kieft.  They 
nourished  the  prolific  seed  of  democracy  which  burst  into  vigorous  life  in 
the  time  of  Jacob  Leisler,  fifty  years  afterward. 

By  prudent  and  adroit  management,  Stuyvesant  soon  swept  away  annoy- 
ances in  the  shape  of  territorial  claims.  When  the  Plymouth  Company,  at 
the  time  of  its  dissolution,  mentioned  in  the  Fifth  Chapter  of  the  Second 
Book,  assigned  their  American  domain  to  twelve  persons,  they  conveyed  to 
Lord  Stirling,  the  proprietor  of  Nova  Scotia,  “a  part  of  New  England  and 
an  island  adjacent  called  Long  Island.”  Stirling  had  tried  to  take  posses- 
sion of  Long  Island,  but  failed.  At  his  death,  in  1647,  his  widow  sent  a 
Scotchman  to  assert  the  claim,  and  act  as  governor.  He  proclaimed  himself 


Chap.  IV. 


FOREIGN  AND  DOMESTIC  TROUBLES. 


343 


as  such,  at  Hempstead.  Stuyvesant  had  him  arrested,  and  put  on  board  a 
ship  bound  for  Holland.  She  touched  at  an  English  port,  where  the  “gov- 
ernor ” escaped,  and  no  further  trouble  with  the  family  of  Lord  Stirling 
ensued. 

In  1650,  Stuyvesant  went  to  Hartford,  and,  by  treaty,  settled  all  disputes 
with  the  New  Englanders  which  had  annoyed  his  predecessors.  Then  he 
turned  his  attention  to  the  suppression  of  the  expanding  power  and  influ- 
ence of  the  Swedes  on  the  Delaware.  The  accession  of  a new  queen  to  the 
throne  of  Sweden  made  it  necessary  to  make  a satisfactory  adjustment  of  the 
long-pending  dispute  about  the  territory.  Stuyvesant  was  instructed  to  act 
firmly  but  discreetly.  Accompanied  by  his  suite  of  officers,  he  went  to  Fort 
Nassau,  on  the  New  Jersey  side  of  the  Delaware,  whence  he  sent  to  Printz, 
the  governor  of  New  Sweden,  an  abstract  of  the  title  of  the  Dutch  to  the 
domain,  and  called  a council  of  the  Indian  chiefs  in  the  neighborhood. 
These  chiefs  declared  the  Swedes  to  be  usurpers,  and  by  solemn  treaty  gave 
all  the  land  to  the  Dutch.  Then  Stuyvesant  crossed  over,  and  near  the 
site  of  New  Castle  in  Delaware  he  built  a military  work,  which  he  called 
Fort  Cassimer.  Governor  Printz  protested  in  vain.  The  two  magistrates 
held  friendly  personal  intercourse,  and  they  mutually  promised  to  “ keep 
neighborly  friendship  and  correspondence  together.”  That  was  in  the  year 
1651. 

An  important  concession  was  made  to  the  inhabitants  of  New  Amster- 
dam the  following  year.  There  was  continual  antagonism  between  Stuy- 
vesant and  the  Nine.  The  governor  tried  to  repress  the  spirit  of  popular 
freedom;  the  Nine  fostered  it.  They  wished  to  have  a municipal  govern- 
ment for  their  growing  capital,  and  made  direct  application  to  the  States- 
General  for  the  privilege.  It  was  granted.  To  the  people  of  New  Amster- 
dam was  allowed  a government  like  the  free  cities  of  Holland,  the  officers 
to  be  appointed  by  the  governor.  Under  the  new  arrangement.  New 
Amsterdam  (afterward  New  York)  was  organized  as  a city,  early  in  1653. 
The  soul  of  Stuyvesant  was  troubled  by  this  “ imprudent  entrusting  of  power 
with  the  people.” 

Stuyvesant  had  scarcely  recovered  from  his  chagrin,  when  a new  danger 
appeared.  For  several  years  English  families  had  come  to  New  Netherland 
from  the  East,  to  escape  the  intolerance  of  the  authorities  of  New  England, 
excepting  in  Rhode  Island,  and  to  enjoy  liberty  of  conscience  in  church  and 
state.  They  had  been  encouraged  by  the  Dutch.  Land  was  freely  granted 
to  them,  and  an  English  secretary  for  the  colony  had  been  appointed.  They 
intermarried  with  the  Dutch,  and  readily  embraced  the  republican  doctrines 
of  the  Hollanders.  These  formed  strong  allies  of  the  friends  of  the  Nine, 

23 


344 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  III. 


and  bore  a conspicuous  part  in  the  democratic  movements  which  gave  Stuy- 
vesant  so  much  trouble  during  the  latter  years  of  his  administration. 

Republicanism,  like  any  other  truth,  has  remarkable  vitality.  Persecution 
promotes  its  growth.  The  more  Stuyvesant  attempted  to  stifle  it,  the  more 
widely  and  vigorously  it  spread.  His  methods  of  rule  were  so  arbitrary  that 
all  classes  of  citizens  became  discontented.  He  made  his  own  will  the 
supreme  law.  His  councillors  had  to  be  his  obedient  servants  or  the  subjects 
of  his  animosity.  The  powerful  patroons  of  Rensselaerwyck  and  the  poorest 
laborer  were  alike  regarded  as  his  subjects,  and  were  required  to  submit  to 
his  tyrannous  rule.  He  was  an  honest  despot — it  was  his  nature  to  be  so — 
and  opposition  to  his  commands  as  governor  he  regarded  as  rank  rebellion. 
The  Dutch  sighed  for  the  freedom  enjoyed  in  Holland,  and  the  English 
settlers  determined  to  exercise  the  liberty  which  English  subjects  then 
enjoyed  under  the  rule  of  Cromwell.  Stuyvesant  saw  the  tidal  wave  of 
popular  feeling  rising,  but  like  Canute  he  sat  still,  firm  in  his  integrity  and 
convictions  of  his  righteousness,  until  he  was  compelled  to  yield  or  perish. 

That  popular  feeling  had  expression  when,  late  in  the  autumn  of  1653,  a 
convention  of  nineteen  delegates,  who  represented  eight  villages  or  com- 
munities, assembled  at  the  town-hall,  in  New  Amsterdam,  ostensibly  to  take 
measures  to  secure  themselves  against  the  depredations  of  savages  and 
pirates.  The  governor  tried  to  control  their  action,  but  they  paid  very  little 
attention  to  his  wishes  and  none  to  his  commands.  When  they  adjourned, 
they  gave  a parting  collation,  to  which  Stuyvesant  was  invited.  Of  course 
he  would  not  sanction  their  proceedings  by  his  presence ; and  the  delegates 
told  him  bluntly  that  there  would  be  another  convention  soon,  and  that  he 
might  do  as  he  pleased  and  prevent  it  if  he  could. 

The  ire  of  the  governor  was  fiercely  kindled  by  the  revolutionary  move- 
ment in  his  capital.  He  stormed  and  threatened,  but  prudently  yielded  to 
the  demands  of  the  people  that  he  should  issue  a call  for  another  convention, 
and  so  give  legal  sanction  for  the  election  of  delegates  thereto.  These  met 
in  New  Amsterdam  on  the  loth  of  December,  1653.  Of  the  eight  districts 
represented,  four  were  Dutch  and  four  were  English.  Of  the  nineteen  dele- 
gates, ten  were  of  Dutch  and  nine  were  of  English  nativity.  As  this  was 
the  first  real  representative  assembly  in  the  great  State  of  New  York  in  its 
infancy — now  an  empire  containing  about  five  million  souls — it  seems  proper 
to  give  here  the  names  of  the  delegates,  and  the  districts  they  represented. 
They  were  as  follows  : 

Erom  the  capital  (New  Amsterdam),  Van  Hattem,  Kregier,  and  Van  de 
Grist;  from  Breucklen  (Brooklyn),  Lubbertsen,  Van  der  Beeck,  and  Beeck- 
man  ; from  Flushing,  Hicks  and  Flake ; from  Newtown,  Coe  and  Hazard  ; 


Chap.  IV. 


STUYVESANT  AND  A POPULAR  CONVENTION. 


345 


from  Heemstede  (Hempstead),  Washburne  and  Somers;  from  Amersfoort, 
(Flatlands),  Wolfertsen,  Strycker,  and  Swartwout ; from  Midwout  (Flatbush), 
Elbertsen  and  Spicer;  and  from  Gravesend,  Baxter  and  Hubbard.  Baxter 
was  the  English  secretary  of  the  colony,  and  led  the  English  delegates. 

The  object  of  the  Convention  was  to  form  and  adopt  a remonstrance 
against  the  tyrannous  rule  of  the  governor.  It  was  drawn  by  Baxter.  After 
expressions  of  loyalty  to  the  States-General,  it  proceeded  with  a statement, 
under  six  heads,  of  the  grievances  endured  by  the  colonists.  It  was  a severe 
indictment  of  Stuyvesant  for  mal-administration  or  bad  management  of 
public  affairs.  The  paper  was  signed  by  all  the  delegates  and  sent  to  the 
governor,  with  a demand  for  a “ categorical  answer  ” to  each  of  its  heads. 

Stuyvesant  met  this  severe  document  with  his  usual  pluck.  He  denied 
the  right  of  some  of  the  delegates  to  seats  in  the  Convention.  He  de- 
nounced the  whole  thing  as  the  wicked  work  of  the  English,  and  doubted 
whether  “George  Baxter,  the  author,  understood  what  he  was  about.”  He 
wanted  to  know  if  there  was  no  one  among  the  Dutch  in  New  Netherland 
“ sagacious  and  expert  enough  to  draw  up  a remonstrance  to  the  director 
and  council,”  and  severely  reprimanded  the  city  government  of  New  Amster- 
dam for  seizing  “ this  dangerous  opportunity  for  conspiring  with  the  Eng- 
lish [with  whom  Holland  was  then  at  war],  who  were  ever  hatching  mischief 
but  nev'er  performing  their  promises,  and  who  might  to-morrow  ally  them- 
selves with  the  North,”  meaning  Sweden  and  Denmark. 

The  Convention  was  not  to  be  silenced  by  bluster  or  threats.  They  told 
the  governor  by  the  mouth  of  Beeckman,  of  Brooklyn,  that  if  he  refused  to 
consider  the  several  points  of  the  remonstrance,  they  would  appeal  to  the 
States-General.  At  this  threat  the  governor  took  fire,  and,  seizing  his  cane, 
ordered  Beeckman  to  leave  his  presence.  The  plucky  ambassador  folded  his 
arms  and  silently  defied  the  magistrate.  When  Stuyvesant’s  wrath  had  sub- 
sided, he  politely  begged  the  representative  to  excuse  his  sudden  ebullition 
of  passion  and  receive  assurances  of  his  personal  regard.  But  he  was  not  so 
complaisant  with  the  Convention  as  a body.  He  ordered  them  to  disperse 
on  pain  of  his  “ high  displeasure.”  He  said,  “ We  derive  our  authority  from 
God  and  the  Company,  not  from  a few  ignorant  subjects ; and  we,  alone,  can 
call  the  inhabitants  together.”  The  Convention  executed  their  threat  by 
sending  an  advocate  to  Holland,  with  papers,  to  ask  the  reforms  which  their 
enumerated  grievances  demanded. 

In  the  midst  of  these  domestic  troubles,  the  tranquillity  of  Stuyvesant’s 
foreign  relations  was  disturbed.  Governor  Printz  had  returned  to  Sweden, 
and  in  his  place  was  John  Risingh,  a more  warlike  magistrate,  who  came  to 
the  Delaware  with  some  soldiers  under  the  bold  Swen  Schute.  They  soon 


346 


OUR  COUNTRY 


Book  III. 


appeared  before  Fort  Cassimer  and  demanded  its  surrender.  “ I have  no 
powder;  what  can  I do?”  said  Bikker,  the  commander,  to  the  Dutch  resi- 
dents, who  fled  to  the  fort  for  protection.  Bikker  went  out  an  hour  after- 
ward, leaving  the  gate  of  the  fort  wide  open,  and  shook  hands  with  Schute 
and  his  men,  welcoming  them  as  friends.  The  Swedes  fired  two  shots 
over  the  fort  in  token  of  its  capture,  and  then  blotting  out  its  Dutch  gar- 


STUVVESANT  AND 


BEECKMAN. 


rison  and  its  name,  called  it  Fort  Trinity.  The  surrender  occurred  on 
Trinity  Sunday,  1654. 

When  news  of  this  event  reached  Stuyvesant,  he  was  enraged  and  per- 
plexed. He  was  expecting  an  attack  from  the  English.  They  did  not 
come,  and  the  governor  prepared  to  wipe  out  the  stain  on  Belgic  prowess 
by  that  “ infamous  surrender.”  After  a day  of  fasting  and  prayer,  and  after 


Chap.  IV. 


TROUBLE  WITH  THE  INDIANS. 


347 


a sermon  on  the  first  Sunday  in  September,  the  following  year  (1655),  seven 
vessels,  carrying  more  than  six  hundred  soldiers,  sailed  from  New  Amster- 
dam for  the  Delaware,  under  the  immediate  command  of  Stuyvesant.  His 
flagship  was  The  Balance.  Some  of  his  civil  officers,  and  the  pastor  of  the 
church,  were  with  him.  They  landed  on  the  beach  between  Fort  Cassimer 
and  Fort  Christina  near  Wilmington.  An  ensign  with  a drum  was  sent  to 
demand  the  surrender  of  the  former.  Schute  complied  the  next  day,  and  in 
the  presence  of  Stuyvesant  and  his  suite,  he  drank  the  health  of  the  gover- 
nor in  a glass  of  Rhenish  wine.  So  ended  the  bloodless  expedition  against 
Fort  Cassimer;  and  before  the  end  of  the  month,  the  conquest  of  New 
Sweden  was  accomplished.  Like  Alfred  of  England,  Stuyvesant  wisely 
made  citizens  of  the  conquered,  and  they  became  loyal  friends  of  the  Dutch. 

When  Stuyvesant  returned  to  Manhattan,  he  found  the  wildest  confusion 
there.  Van  Dyck,  a former  civil  officer,  deteqted  a squaw  stealing  peaches 
from  his  garden,  and  killed  her.  The  fury  of  her  tribe  was  kindled.  The 
long  peace  with  the  savages  for  ten  years  was  suddenly  broken.  Before  day- 
break one  morning  almost  two  thousand  of  the  River  Indians  appeared 
before  New  Amsterdam  in  sixty  canoes,  landed,  distributed  themselves 
through  the  town,  and  under  pretence  of  looking  for  Northern  Indians,  they 
broke  into  several  dwellings  in  search  of  Van  Dyck.  A council  of  the 
inhabitants  was  immediately  held  at  the  fort,  and  the  sachems  of  the  invaders 
were  summoned  before  them.  The  Indian  leaders  agreed  to  leave  the  city 
and  pass  over  to  Nutten  (now  The  Governor’s)  Island  before  sunset.  They 
broke  their  promise,  and  in  the  evening  they  shot  Van  Dyck  and  menaced 
others.  The  people  flew  to  arms  and  drove  the  savages  to  their  canoes. 
The  Indians  crossed  the  Hudson,  and  ravaged  New  Jersey  and  Staten 
Island.  Within  three  days  a hundred  inhabitants  were  killed,  one  hundred 
and  fifty  were  made  captives,  and  the  estates  of  three  hundred  were  utterly 
desolated  by  the  dusky  foe.  Stuyvesant  returned  at  the  height  of  the 
excitement,  and  soon  brought  order  out  of  confusion.  Yet  distant  settle- 
ments were  broken  up,  the  inhabitants,  in  fear,  flying  to  Manhattan  for 
safety.  To  prevent  a like  calamity  in  the  future,  the  governor  issued  a pro- 
clamation ordering  all  who  lived  in  secluded  places  in  the  country  to  gather 
themselves  into  villages  “after  the  fashion  of  our  New  England  neighbors.” 
Excepting  difficulties  between  the  governor  and  the  citizens,  growing  out 
of  his  arbitrary  rule.  New  Netherland  prospered  in  quiet  for  almost  ten 
years  after  the  Indian  invasions,  when  a crisis  in  its  political  affairs  approached. 
The  people  were  generally  industrious,  and  happy  homes  abounded.  In 
them  were  many  uncultured  minds  but  affectionate  hearts,  and  life  was 
enjoyed  in  a dreamy,  quiet  blissfulness,  unknown  in  these  bustling  days 


348 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  111. 


The  city  people  arose  at  dawn,  dined  at  eleven  o’clock,  and  went  to  bed  at 
sunset  in  the  summer.  Fashionable  parties  began  at  three  o’clock  in  the 
afternoon  in  winter  and  ended  at  six,  so  that  all  the  members  of  a family 
might  be  ready  for  evening  devotions  and  bed  at  seven.  Very  little  atten- 
tion was  paid  to  political  questions  by  the  “ commonalty  ” or  the  mass  of  the 
people ; but  there  were  many  wide-awake  men  and  women  who  were  restive 
under  the  sharp  administration  of  Stuyvesant.  Some  declared  that  they 
would  be  willing  to  endure  English  rule  for  the  sake  of  enjoying  English 
liberty.  They  very  soon  had  an  opportunity  to  try  both. 

Charles  the  Second  assigned  to  his  brother  James,  Duke  of  York,  the 
whole  territory  of  New  Netherland,  with  Long  Island  and  a part  of  Con- 
necticut. Charles  had  no  more  right  to  that  domain  than  the  Prince  of 
Darkness  had  to  the  “ kingdoms  of  the  world  ” which  he  offered  to  the 
Redeemer  if  he  would  worship  the  Evil  One.  But  the  brutal  argument  that 
“might  makes  right  ” justified  the  royal  brothers,  in  their  own  estimation, 
in  sending  ships,  men  and  cannon,  the  “last  argument  of  kings,’’  to  take 
possession  of  and  hold  the  territory.  Four  ships-of-war,  bearing  four  hun- 
dred and  fifty  soldiers  commanded  by  Colonel  Richard  Nicolls,  a court 
favorite,  arrived  before  New  Amsterdam  at  near  the  close  of  August,  1664. 
Stuyvesant  had  been  warned  of  their  approach,  and  tried  to  strengthen  the 
fort ; but  money,  men,  and  will  were  wanting.  English  influence  and  the 
governor’s  temper  had  alienated  the  people,  and  they  were  indifferent. 
Some  of  them  regarded  the  invaders  as  welcome  friends.  Stuyvesant  began 
to  make  concessions  to  the  popular  wishes.  It  was  too  late;  and  New 
Amsterdam  became  an  easy  prey  to  English  conquerors — freebooters  in  the 
eye  of  justice. 

Revolutionary  movements  had  taken  place  among  the  English  on  Long 
Island,  early  in  this  year,  which  the  governor  could  not  suppress,  and  the 
province  was  rent  by  internal  discord  for  several  months.  A war  with  the 
Indians  above  the  Hudson  highlands  had  also  given  the  governor  much 
trouble,  but  his  energy  and  wisdom  had  brought  it  to  a close.  The  anthems 
of  a thanksgiving  day  had  died  away,  and  the  governor,  assured  of  peace, 
had  gone  to  Fort  Orange  (Albany),  when  news  reached  him  of  the  coming 
English  armament.  He  hastened  back  to  his  capital,  and  on  Saturday,  the 
30th  day  of  August,  Nicolls  sent  to  the  governor  a formal  summons  to  sur- 
render the  fort  and  city.  He  also  sent  a proclamation  to  the  citizens, 
promising  perfect  security  of  person  and  property  to  all  who  should  quietly 
submit  to  English  rule. 

Stuyvesant  assembled  his  council  and  the  burghers  or  magistrates,  at  the 
fort,  to  consider  public  affairs.  They  favored  submission  without  resistance. 


Chap.  IV. 


STUYVESANT  AND  NICOLLS'S  LETTER. 


349 


The  governor,  true  to  his  superiors  and  to  his  own  convictions  of  duty, 
would  not  listen  to  such  a proposition,  nor  allow  the  inhabitants  to  see  the 
proclamation.  The  Sabbath  passed  without  any  answer  to  the  summons. 
It  was  a day  of  great  excitement  and  anxiety  in  New  Amsterdam,  and  the 
people  became  impatient.  On  Monday  the  magistrates  explained  to  them 
the  situation  of  affairs,  and  they  demanded  a sight  of  the  proclamation.  It 
was  refused  ; and  they  were  on 
the  verge  of  open  insurrection, 
when  a new  turn  in  events  took 
place. 

Governor  Winthrop,  of  Con- 
necticut, with  whom  Stuyvesant 
was  on  friendly  terms,  had  joined 
the  English  squadron.  Nicolls 
sent  him  to  Stuyvesant  as  an 
ambassador,  with  a letter  in 
which  was  repeated  the  demand 
for  a surrender.  The  two  gov- 
ernors met  at  the  gate  of  the 
fort.  When  Stuyvesant  read 
the  letter,  he  promptly  refused 
to  comply.  Closing  the  gate,  he 
retired  to  the  council  chamber 
and  laid  the  letter  before  his 
cabinet  and  the  magistrates. 

They  said,  “ Read  the  letter  to 
the  people  and  so  get  their  mind.” 

The  governor  stoutly  refused. 

The  council  and  magistrates  as 
stoutly  insisted  that  he  should 
do  so,  when  the  enraged  gover- 
nor, who  had  fairly  earned  the 
title  of  “ Peter  the  Headstrong,” 
unable  to  control  his  passion, 

tore  the  letter  into  pieces.  The  people  at  work  on  the  palisades,  hearing  of 
this,  hastened  to  the  State-House,  where  a large  number  of  citizens  were 
soon  gathered.  They  sent  a deputation  to  the  fort  to  demand  the  letter. 
Stuyvesant  stormed.  The  deputies  were  inflexible,  and  a fair  copy  of  the 
letter  was  made  from  the  pieces,  taken  to  the  State-House  and  read  to  the 
inhabitants.  At  that  time  the  population  of  New  Amsterdam  did  not 


STUYVESANT  AND  GOVERNOR  WINTHROP. 


350 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  III. 


exceed  fifteen  hundred  souls.  There  were  not  more  than  two  hundred  men, 
excepting  the  little  garrison,  capable  of  bearing  arms. 

The  impatient  Nicolls  sent  a message  to  the  silent  governor,  saying:  “ I 
shall  come  for  your  answer  to-morrow  with  ships  and  soldiers,”  and  anchored 
two  war-vessels  between  the  fort  and  the  Governor’s  Island.  Stuyvesant’s 
proud  will  would  not  bend  to  circumstances,  and  from  the  ramparts  of  the 
fort  he  saw  their  preparation  for  attack,  unmoved.  And  when  men,  women 
and  children,  and  even  his  beloved  son,  Balthazzar,  entreated  him  to  sur- 
render that  the  lives  and  property  of  the  citizens  might  be  spared,  he  replied: 
“ I had  much  rather  be  carried  out  dead.”  At  length,  when  the  magistrates, 
the  clergy  and  many  of  the  principal  citizens  entreated  him,  the  proud  old 
governor,  who  had  “ a heart  as  big  as  an  ox  and  a head  that  would  have  set 
adamant  to  scorn,”  consented  to  capitulate.  He  had  held  out  for  a week. 
On  Monday  morning,  the  8th  of  September,  1664,  he  led  his  troops  from  the 
fort  to  a ship  on  which  they  were  embarked  for  Holland,  and  an  hour  after- 
ward the  red  cross  of  St.  George,  as  the  flag  of  England  (whose  most  con- 
spicuous figure  is  a red  cross)  is  sometimes  poetically  called,  was  floating 
over  Fort  Amsterdam,  the  name  of  which  was  changed  to  Fort  James,  in 
compliment  to  the  duke. 

The  remainder  of  New  Netherland  soon  passed  into  the  possession  of  the 
English,  and  the  city  and  province  were  named  New  York,  also  in  compliment 
to  the  duke.  Colonel  Nicolls,  whom  the  duke  had  appointed  his  deputy- 
governor,  was  so  proclaimed  by  the  magistrates  of  the  city ; and  all  officers 
within  the  domain  of  New  Netherland  were  required  to  take  an  oath  of 
allegiance  to  the  British  crown. 

In  the  curious  fort  the  new  governor  made  his  abode.  It  must  have 
appeared  ludicrous  as  a fortification,  to  the  eyes  of  an  experienced  European 
soldier  like  Nicolls.  It  contained  besides  the  governor’s  house  and  barracks, 
a steep  gambrel-roofed  church  with  a high  tower,  a wind-mill,  gallows,  pillory, 
whipping-post,  prison,  and  tall  flag-staff.  There  was,  generally,  a cheerful 
submission  to  the  conquerors  on  the  part  of  the  inhabitants,  and  profound 
quiet  reigned  in  New  York  after  the  turmoil  of  the  surrender. 

So  passed  into  the  domain  of  perfected  history  the  Dutch  dominion  in 
America,  after  an  existence  of  half  a century.  By  that  unrighteous  seizure 
of  a territory  which  had  been  discovered  and  settled  by  the  Dutch,  England 
became  the  mistress  of  all  the  domain  stretching  along  the  coast  of  the 
Atlantic  Ocean  from  Florida  to  Acadi6,  and  westward  across  the  entire  con- 
tinent. But  upon  New  Netherland  the  Dutch,  in  that  brief  space  of  time, 
had  made  so  deep  an  impression  of  their  institutions,  their  social  and 
religious  habits,  their  modes  of  thought  and  peculiarities  of  character,  that. 


Chap.  IV. 


STUYVESANT  AND  THE  WEST  INDIA  COMPANY. 


351 


like  the  Greeks  when  overcome  by  the  brute  force  of  the  Romans,  they 
remained  unconquered  in  the  loftier  aspect  of  the  case.  The  best  charac- 
teristics of  the  Dutch  of  New  Netherland  are  now,  after  the  lapse  of  more 
than  two  centuries,  marked  features  in  the  society  of  New  York. 

In  1665,  Stuyvesant  went  to  Holland  to  report  to  his  superiors.  They 
wished  to  shift  the  responsibility  of  the  disaster  from  their  shoulders  to  that 
of  their  last  director.  They  declared  that  the  governor  had  not  done  his 
duty,  and  asked  the  States-General  to  disapprove  of  “ the  scandalous  sur- 
render” of  New  Netherland.  Stuyvesant  made  a similar  counter-charge 
and  begged  the  States-General  to  come  to  a speedy  decision  of  his  case,  that 
he  might  return  to  America  for  his  family.  Their  High  Mightinesses,  as  the 
representatives  of  Holland  were  called, 
required  him  to  answer  the  charges  of 
the  West  India  Company.  He  sent  to 
New  York  for  sworn  testimony,  and  at 
the  end  of  six  months  he  made  an  able 
report,  its  allegations  sustained  by  un- 
impeachable witnesses.  Among  other 
affidavits  was  that  of  Van  Ruyven,  the 
then  agent  of  the  Company  at  New 
York  and  former  secretary  of  the  prov- 
ince, in  which  it  was  distinctly  charged 
that  the  disaster  was  owing  to  the  neg- 
lect of  the  Company.  The  latter  made 
a petulant  rejoinder,  when  circum- 
stances put  an  end  to  the  dispute.  War 
between  England  and  Holland,  then 
raging,  was  ended  by  the  peace  con- 
cluded at  Breda  in  1667,  when  the  latter 
relinquished  to  the  former  its  claim  to 
New  Netherland.  This  finished  the 
controversy  between  Stuyvesant  and  the  West  India  Company. 

Stuyvesant  now  departed  for  New  York  by  way  of  England,  where  he 
obtained  from  King  Charles  the  concession  of  the  privilege  for  three  Dutch 
vessels  to  have  free  commerce  with  New  York  for  the  space  of  seven  years. 
Then  he  sailed  for  America,  with  the  determination  of  spending  the  re- 
mainder of  his  life  in  New  York.  He  was  cordially  welcomed  by  his  old 
friends;  and  he  was  kindly  received  by  his  political  enemies,  who  had  learned 
by  experience  that  he  was  not  a worse  governor  than  the  duke  had  sent 
them.  Stuyvesant  retired  to  his  bowerie  or  farm  on  the  East  River,  and  in 


352 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  UI. 


the  quiet  of  domestic  life  he  enjoyed  the  respect  of  his  fellow-citizens. 
There  he  died  in  1682,  at  the  age  of  eighty  years;  and  under  the  venerable 
St.  Mark’s  Church,  in  the  city  of  New  York,  his  remains  repose.  With  all 
his  faults  magnified  by  prejudice,  Peter  Stuyvesant  stands  out  conspicuous 
in  our  annals  as  a grand  historic  character. 

The  dreams  of  freedom  under  English  rule  were  never  realized.  The 
inhabitants  of  New  York  soon  found  that  a change  of  masters  did  not 
increase  their  prosperity  or  happiness.  “ Fresh  names  and  laws,  they  found,” 
says  Brodhead,  “ did  not  secure  fresh  liberties.  Amsterdam  was  changed  to 
York,  and  Orange  to  Albany.  But  these  changes  only  commemorated  the 
titles  of  a conqueror.  It  was  nearly  twenty  years  before  that  conqueror 
allowed,  for  a brief  period,  to  the  people  of  New  York,  even  that  partial 
degree  of  representative  government  which  they  had  enjoyed  when  the 
three-colored  ensign  of  Holland  was  hauled  down  from  the  flag-staff  of 
Fort  Amsterdam.  New  Netherland  exchanged  Stuyvesant,  and  the  West 
India  Company,  and  a republican  sovereignty,  for  Nicolls,  and  a royal  pro- 
prietor, and  a hereditary  king.  The  province  was  not  represented  in  Parlia- 
ment, nor  could  the  voice  of  its  people  reach  the  Chapel  of  St.  Stephen  at 
Westminster  as  readily  as  it  had  reached  the  Chambers  of  the  Binnenhof  at 
the  Hague.” 

Nicolls  ruled  wisely,  and  Francis  Fovelace,  his  successor  in  1667,  ruled 
mildly.  The  latter  was  a quiet  man,  unfitted  to  encounter  great  storms,  yet 
he  showed  considerable  energy  in  dealing  with  the  hostile  Indians  and 
French  on  the  northern  frontier  of  New  York  during  his  administration. 
He  held  friendly  intercourse  with  the  people  of  New  England  ; and  in 
the  summer  of  1672,  when  a hostile  squadron  of  Dutch  vessels  of  war 
appeared  before  his  capital,  he  was  on  a friendly  visit  to  Governor  Winthrop, 
of  Connecticut.  There  was  war,  again,  between  England  and  Holland,  at 
that  time,  and  the  Dutch  inhabitants  of  New  York  had  shown  signs  of  dis- 
content because  of  the  abridgment  of  their  political  privileges,  and  a heavy 
increase  in  their  taxes,  without  their  consent.  Personally  they  liked  Love- 
lace, but  they  were  bound  to  consider  him  as  the  representative  of  a petty 
tyrant.  When,  in  menacing  attitude,  they  demanded  more  liberty  and  less 
taxation,  the  governor,  in  a passion,  unwisely  declared  that  they  should 
“have  liberty  for  no  thought  but  how  to  pay  their  taxes.”  This  was 
resented,  and  when  the  Dutch  squadron  came,  nearly  all  the  Hollanders 
regarded  their  countrymen  in  the  ships  as  liberators.  When  Colonel  Man- 
ning, who  commanded  the  fort,  called  for  volunteers,  few  came,  and  these  not 
as  friends  but  as  enemies,  for  they  spiked  the  cannon  in  front  of  the  State- 
House. 


Chap.  IV. 


NEW  YORK  RETAKEN  BY  THE  DUTCH. 


353 


Manning  sent  an  express  for  Lovelace,  and  seemed  to  do  what  he  might 
to  defend  the  fort.  When  the  ships  came  up  and  fired  their  broadsides  upon 
it,  he  returned  their  fire  and  shot  the  Dutch  flag-ship  “ through  and  through.” 
Then  six  hundred  Holland  soldiers  landed  on  the  bank  of  the  Hudson  above 
the  town,  where  they  were  joined  by  four  hundred  Dutch  citizens  in  arms, 
who  encouraged  them  to  storm  the  fort.  They  were  marching  down  Broad- 
way for  the  purpose,  when  they  were  met  by  a messenger  from  Manning 
with  a proposition  to  surrender  the  fort,  if  his  troops  might  be  allowed  to 
march  out  with  the  honors  of  war.  The  proposition  was  accepted.  The 
English  garrison  marched  out  with  their  colors  flying  and  drums  beating,  and 
laid  down  their  arms.  The  Dutch  soldiers  marched  in,  followed  by  the 
English  troops,  who  were  made  prisoners  of  war  and  confined  in  the  church. 

On  that  hot  summer  day,  the  9th  of  August,  1672,  the  flag  of  the  Dutch 
republic  waved  over  recovered  Fort  Amsterdam,  and  the  name  of  the  city 
of  New  York  was  changed  to  that  of  New  Orange,  in  compliment  to  William 
Prince  of  Orange,  the  stadtholder  or  chief  magistrate  of  Holland.  The  rest 
of  the  province  soon  submitted  to  the  conquerors,  and  British  sovereignty 
over  it  was  extinguished.  Stuyvesant,  a quiet  but  exultant  spectator  of 
these  momentous  events,  was  avenged.  The  Dutch  had  taken  Neiv  York  ! 


CHAPTER  V. 


NEW  NETHERLAND  RESTORED  TO  THE  BRITISH — ANDROS  AND  THE  DUKE  OF  YORK — GOVERNOR 
DONGAN  AND  THE  FIRST  GENERAL  ASSEMBLY  IN  NEW  YORK — JAMES  II  AND  THE  COLONIES  — 
A NEW  HEIR  TO  THE  THRONE — JACOB  LEISLER  AND  HIS  CAREER — REPUBLICANISM  IN  NEW 
YORK — GOVERNOR  FLETCHER  AND  HIS  DISCOMFITURE  AT  HARTFORD — INDIANS  INVADE  NEW 
YORK — GOVERNOR  BELLAMONT — CAPTAIN  KIDD,  HIS  ASSOCIATES  AND  CAREER — GOVERNOR 
HYDE  AND  HIS  ADMINISTRATION — OTHER  GOVERNORS  OF  NEW  YORK — POLITICAL  PARTIES — 
FREEDOM  OF  THE  PRESS  VINDICATED — NEGRO  PLOT. 

The  swift  conquest  of  New  York  by  the  Dutch  was  speedily  sup- 
plemented by  the  submission  of  the  settlers  on  the  Delaware 
within  the  domain  of  New  Netherland.  The  other  English  colo- 
nists were  amazed  by  the  unlooked-for  event,  and  some  of  them  prepared 
for  war.  Connecticut  foolishly  talked  of  an  offensive  war ; others  prepared 
to  stand  on  the  defensive.  Anthony  Colve,  the  governor  of  re-conquered 
New  Amsterdam,  was  wide-awake.  He  kept  his  eye  on  the  movements  of 
the  savages  and  Frenchmen  on  the  North;  watched  every  hostile  indication 
in  the  East,  and  sent  proclamations  and  commissions  to  towns  on  Long 
Island  and  in  Westchester  to  compel  hesitating  boroughs  to  take  the  oath  of 
allegiance  to  Prince  William  of  Orange.  He  had  strengthened  his  fortifica- 
tions; and  upon  the  fort  and  around  the  city  of  New  Orange  he  had  planted 
one  hundred  and  ninety  cannon.  But  all  anxiety  was  ended  by  a treaty  of 
peace  between  the  Dutch  and  English,  made  at  London  early  in  1674,  by 
which  New  Netherland  was  restored  to  the  British  crown.  Some  doubts 
arising  about  the  validity  of  the  duke’s  title  after  these  changes,  the  king 
gave  him  a new  grant  of  territory  in  June,  1674,  within  the  boundary  of 
which  was  included  all  the  domain  west  of  the  Connecticut  River,  to  the 
eastern  shores  of  the  Delaware ; also  Long  Island  and  a territory  in  Maine. 
King  Charles  had  commissioned  Major  Edmund  Andros  to  receive  the  sur- 
render of  the  province  from  the  Dutch  governor.  He  was  now  appointed 
governor  of  New  York.  The  surrender  took  place,  in  a formal  manner,  at 
Fort  James,  in  October. 

Andros,  who  was  destined  to  play  an  important  part  in  American  affairs, 
was  then  thirty-seven  years  of  age.  He  had  been  brought  up  in  the  royal 


Chap.  V 


GOVERNOR  EDMUND  ANDROS, 


355 


household,  and  accompanied  the  exiled  family  to  Holland,  where  he  began  his 
military  career.  As  major  of  Prince  Rupert’s  regiment  of  dragoons,  he  per- 
formed gallant  service,  and  being  a favorite  of  the  king  and  the  duke,  a good 
Dutch  and  French  scholar,  a thorough  royalist  and  an  obedient  s^^rvant  of 
his  superiors,  he  was  well  fitted  to  perform  the  part  which  his  masters 
appointed  him  to  play.  His  private  character  was  without  blemish,  and  the 


FINAL  SURRENDER  BY  THE  DUTCH  TO  THE  ENGLISH. 


evil  things  spoken  of  him  relate  to  his  public  career.  The  duke’s  instruc- 
tions favored  the  constitution  of  the  province  of  New  York,  and  Andros 
enforced  them  with  ever-increasing  vigor.  In  his  zeal  he  even  exceeded  his 
instructions;  and  in  a short  time  he  acquired  the  just  title  of  “tyrant.” 
The  duke,  his  master,  was  a strange  compound  of  wickedness  and  goodness ; 


356 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  III. 


slow  to  perceive  right  from  wrong  and  seldom  seeing  the  truth  in  its  purity. 
Bancroft  says  af  him — “ A libertine  without  love,  a devotee  without  spirit- 
uality, an  advocate  of  toleration  without  a sense  of  the  natural  right  to  free- 
dom of  conscience, — in  him  the  muscular  force  prevailed  over  the  intel- 
lectual. He  was  not  blood-thirsty;  but  to  a narrow  mind  fear  seems  the 
most  powerful  instrument  of  government,  and  he  propped  his  throne  with 
the  block  and  the  gallows.  He  floated  between  the  sensuality  of  indulgence 
and  the  sensuality  of  superstition,  hazarding  heaven  for  an  ugly  mistress, 
and,  to  the  great  delight  of  abbots  and  nuns,  winning  it  back  again  by  prick- 
ing his  flesh  with  sharp  points  of  iron,  and  eating  no  meat  on  Saturdays.” 
Of  the  two  brothers,  the  Duke  of  Buckingham  said  well,  that  “ Charles 
would  not,  and  James  could  not  see.”  The  fact  that  he  was  the  destined 
successor  of  Charles  on  the  throne  of  England — a king  whose  irregularities 
of  life  were  rapidly  hurrying  him  to  the  grave — made  James  an  object  of 
intense  interest  to  the  Protestants  of  the  realm,  and  the  subject  of  intrigues 
to  prevent  him  ascending  to  the  seat  of  his  brother. 

With  all  their  political  disabilities  under  Andros,  the  people  of  New 
York  were  prosperous  and  therefore  comparatively  happy.  Luxury  had  not 
corrupted  their  tastes,  and  wants  were  few.  A man  worth  three  thousand 
dollars  was  rich  ; the  possessor  of  five  thousand  dollars  was  opulent.  There 
was  an  almost  dead  level  of  equality  in  society.  Beggars  were  unknown. 
“ Ministers  were  few,  but  religions  many ;”  and  out  of  matters  of  faith  grew 
many  controversies.  There  seemed  little  reason  for  the  twenty  thousand 
inhabitants  of  the  domain  to  be  unhappy  ; but  the  divine  instinct  of  free- 
dom, which  demanded  a free  exercise  of  the  rights  of  self-government,  made 
many  of  them  discontented  and  in  some  places  mutinous. 

It  was  then  a stormy  time  in  England.  Theological  disputes  culminated 
in  bloodshed  and  universal  disorder,  and  thousands  were  sent  to  America, 
and  other  thousands  fled  to  the  colonies.  Of  the  former,  women  were  often 
burnt  in  the  cheek,  and  men  marked  by  cutting  off  their  ears.  These 
fugitives,  many  of  them  people  of  good  families  and  education,  inoculated 
all  the  provinces  with  healthful  republican  aspirations. 

At  about  this  time  the  duke’s  daughter  Mary  married  her  cousin  Prince 
William  of  Orange.  These  nuptials  were  distasteful  to  the  duke,  who  was 
becoming  more  and  more  a confirmed  Roman  Catholic ; for  William  was 
recognized  as  the  leader  of  the  Protestants  of  Europe.  “ I predict,”  said 
the  French  ambassador  in  London  to  James,  “ that  such  a son-in-law  will 
inevitably  be  your  ruin.”  The  prediction  was  soon  fulfilled,  as  we  shall 
observe  presently.  The  nuptials  of  those  cousins  led  to  very  important 
events  in  the  history  of  England  and  America. 


Chap.  V. 


CHARTER  OF  LIBERTIES  FOR  NEW  YORK. 


357 


The  career  of  Andros  outside  of  New  York  was  more  striking — more 
dramatic — than  within  that  domain.  This  career  we  shall  have  occasion  to 
notice  hereafter.  It  is  sufficient  to  say  here,  that  after  an  administration  of 
about  nine  years,  he  was  succeeded  in  1683  by  Thomas  Dongan,  a mild- 
mannered  and  enlightened  Irishman  of  the  Roman  Catholic  faith,  who 
reached  New  York  in  August.  Andros  had  ruled  with  vigor,  keeping  peace 
with  the  powerful  Iroquois  Confederacy;  curbing  religious  enthusiasts: 
frowning  upon  every  sign  of  republicanism,  and  asserting  with  great  tenacity 
the  powers  of  the  duke  within  the  chartered  limits  of  his  territory.  Mean- 
while the  duke  had  listened  to  the  appeals  of  the  inhabitants  of  New  York 
and  heeded  the  judicious  advice  of  William  Penn,  to  give  the  people  liberty  ; 
and  Dongan  was  clothed  with  authority  to  call  an  assembly  of  representa- 
tives of  the  people.  Dongan’s  sympathies  were  with  the  popular  desires, 
and  performing  the  duty  with  alacrity,  he  saw  a Legislative  Assembly  in 
session  in  Fort  James  at  New  York,  on  the  17th  of  October,  1683 — about 
thirty  years  after  the  Dutch,  in  the  same  city,  made  a demand  for  a popular 
convention.  It  is  a memorable  day  in  the  history  of  the  State  of  New  York. 
Then  was  established  the  first  General  Assembly  of  the  Province  of  New 
York,  composed  of  seventeen  representatives,  who  sat  three  weeks,  and 
passed  fourteen  acts,  all  of  which  were  assented  to  by  the  governor  and  his 
council.  The  first  of  these  was  entitled  “ The  Charter  of  Liberties  and 
Privileges,  granted  by  his  Royal  Highness,  to  the  inhabitants  of  New  York 
and  its  Dependencies.”  It  declared  that  supreme  legislative  power  should 
forever  be  and  reside  in  the  governor,  council  and  people,  met  in  general 
assembly ; that  every  freeholder  and  freeman  should  be  allowed  to  vote  for 
representatives  without  restraint ; that  no  freeman  should  suffer  but  by  judg- 
ment of  his  peers;  that  all  trials  should  be  by  a jury  of  twelve  men  ; that 
no  tax  should  be  assessed,  on  any  pretence  whatever,  but  by  the  consent  of 
the  Assembly  ; that  no  seaman  or  soldier  should  be  quartered  on  the  inhabit- 
ants against  their  will ; that  no  martial-law  should  exist ; and  that  no  person, 
professing  faith  in  God,  by  Jesus  Christ,  should,  at  any  time,  be  any  wise 
disquieted  or  questioned  for  any  difference  of  opinion.  Not  a feature  of  the 
intolerance  and  bigotry  of  New  England  charters  appeared  in  this  first 
“Charter  of  Liberties”  for  the  province  of  New  York. 

The  hopes  raised  by  the  ratification  of  this  Charter  of  Liberties  were 
doomed  to  early  disappointment.  When,  at  the  beginning  of  1685,  James 
ascended  the  throne,  on  the  death  of  Charles,  he  refused  to  confirm  as  king 
what  he  had  solemnly  promised  as  duke.  He  immediately  began  to  demolish 
the  fair  fabric  of  civil  and  religious  liberty  which  had  been  reared  in  New 
York.  A direct  tax  was  ordered ; the  printing-press — the  right  arm  of 


358 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  111. 


knowledge  and  of  freedom — was  forbidden  a place  in  the  colony ; and  as  he 
had  determined  to  establish  the  Roman  Catholic  faith  as  the  state  religion 
throughout  his  realm,  the  provincial  offices  were  filled  by  adherents  of  the 
Italian  Church.  The  liberal-minded  Dongan  lamented  these  proceedings ; 
and  when  the  stupid  king  instructed  the  governor  to  introduce  French  priests 
among  the  Five  Nations,  Dongan  resisted  the  measure  as  dangerous  to  the 
English  power  on  the  continent.  Fortunately  the  Iroquois  Confederacy 
remained  firm  in  their  friendship  for  the  English,  in  after  years,  and  stood  as 
a powerful  barrier  against  the  French,  when  the  latter  twice  attempted  to 
reach  the  white  settlements  at  Albany. 

The  clear-headed  and  right-minded  Dongan  stood  by  the  people  and  the 
interests  of  England  with  a firmness  that  finally  oftended  the  monarch.  Me 
knew  that  James  had  a great  love  for  the  French,  and  when  he  saw  the 
advantages  which  he  gave  them  in  America  by  unwise  acts,  he  could  not  but 
regard  the  sovereign’s  conduct  as  treason  to  his  country.  For  his  faithful- 
ness, he  was  rewarded  with  the  gratitude  of  the  people  of  New  York,  and 
with  dismissal  from  the  office  of  governor  by  the  king.  In  the  spring  of 
1688,  he  received  a letter  from  James,  ordering  him  to  surrender  the  govern- 
ment into  the  hands  of  Andros,  who  had  a vice-regal  commission  to  rule 
New  York  and  all  New  England. 

The  viceroy  journeyed  from  Boston  to  New  York  early  in  August,  where 
he  was  received  by  Colonel  Bayard’s  regiment  of  foot  and  horse,  and  was 
entertained  by  the  loyal  aristocracy.  In  the  midst  of  the  rejoicings,  the 
news  came  that  the  queen,  the  second  wife  of  James,  had  been  blessed  with 
a son,  who  became  heir  to  the  throne.  The  event  was  celebrated  the  same 
evening  by  bonfires  in  the  streets  and  a feast  at  the  City  Hall.  At  the  latter, 
Mayor  Van  Cortlandt  became  so  hilarious,  that  he  made  a burnt  sacrifice  to 
his  loyalty  of  his  hat  and  periwig,  waving  the  burning  victims  over  the  ban- 
quet table  on  the  point  of  his  straight  sword. 

The  Dutch  inhabitants  of  New  York,  as  well  as  the  Protestant  repub- 
licans, were  disappointed  by  the  royal  birth,  for  they  had  looked  forward 
with  hope  for  the  accession  of  Mary,  the  wife  of  their  own  Prince  of  Orange, 
to  the  throne  of  England.  This  event  intensified  the  general  discontent 
because  of  the  consolidation  of  New  York  with  New  England  and  the 
abridgment  of  their  rights,  and  the  people  were  on  the  verge  of  open 
rebellion  when  a revolution  in  England  changed  the  whole  aspect  of  affairs 
there  and  in  America,  and  satisfied  the  aspirations  of  the  Dutch  at  New 
York  by  seating  William  and  Mary  on  the  throne.  The  general  result  of 
that  revolution  has  been  recorded  at  near  the  close  of  the  Second  Chapter 
of  the  Third  Book. 


Chap. 


LEISLER  AND  THE  PEOPLE. 


359 


The  effect  of  the  accession  of  William  and  Mary,  in  New  England,  will 
be  noticed  hereafter.  Andros  and  his  political  associates  were  seized  at 
Boston,  and  sent  to  England.  This  act  was  followed  in  New  York  by  the 
seizure  of  Fort  James.  In  this  movement  Jacob  Leisler,  an  influential 
merchant  and  commander  of  militia,  took  a leading  part.  He  was  a German 
colonist ; a Presbyterian  in  church-fellowship ; an  enthusiastic  admirer  of 
William  of  Orange,  but  with  democratic  tendencies.  About  five  hundred 
men  in  arms  rallied  around  him 
at  the  fort,  whence  he  issued  this 
declaration : “ As  soon  as  the 
bearer  of  orders  from  the  Prince 
of  Orange  shall  have  let  us  see 
his  power,  then,  without  delay, 
we  do  intend  to  obey,  not  the 
orders  only,  but  also  the  bearer 
thereof.” 

Leisler  refused  to  proclaim 
the  accession  of  William  and 
Mary,  until  he  should  be  offi- 
cially certified  of  the  fact.  At 
his  request,  delegates  from  a few 
towns  assembled  in  convention, 
formed  a Committee  of  Safety 
of  ten,  and  proceeded  to  or- 
ganize a provisional  government. 

They  commissioned  Leisler  com- 
mander of  the  province,  when 
Nicholson,  whose  time-serving 
policy  had  alienated  from  him- 
self the  confidence  of  the  people, 
fearing  the  populace,  fled  on 
board  a vessel  and  sailed  for 
London.  This  flight  gave  Leisler  and  his  adherents  an  unexpected  advan- 
tage. The  people  consented  that  he  should  act  as  governor  in  the  absence 
of  regularly  constituted  authority.  The  aristocracy  were  offended  because 
an  “ insolent  foreigner  and  plebeian  ” was  in  the  high  seat  of  power.  They 
bitterly  opposed  him,  but  he  managed  public  affairs  so  well  that  his  enemies 
were  compelled  to  praise  him.  Van  Cortlandt,  Bayard  and  other  leaders  of 
the  aristocracy  retired  to  Albany,  where  a convention  of  the  people  acknowl- 
edged allegiance  to  William  and  Mary,  defied  the  power  of  Leisler,  and 

2d. 


THE  MAYOR  S BURNT-OFFEKING. 


360 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  III. 


denounced  him  as  a treasonable  usurper.  Their  influence  in  the  province 
was  great,  and  the  communities  on  the  Hudson  generally  disapproved  of  the 
mutinous  proceedings  in  New  York. 

When,  late  in  the  year  (1689),  royal  letters  were  received  addressed  to 
the  governor,  or,  in  his  absence,  to  “ such  as,  for  the  time  being,  take  care 
for  preserving  the  public  peace  and  administering  the  law  in  New  York,” 
Lcisler  considered  that  his  own  authority  had  received  the  royal  sanction. 
He  now,  with  clouded  judgment  and  inconsiderate  rashness,  determined  to 
bring  into  obedience  the  aristocratic  party,  whose  focus  of  strength  was  at 
Albany  under  the  lead  of  Peter  Schuyler,  the  mayor  of  that  city.  He  sent 
his  son-in-law,  Jacob  Milborne,  with  a few  troops  to  enforce  that  obedience. 
He  was  resisted  by  argument  and  physical  force  until  the  awful  destruction 
of  Schenectady  by  the  Indians  in  February,  1690,  spread  universal  alarm 
and  pointed  to  the  necessity  for  uniting  for  the  common  defence.  The 
authority  of  Leisler  was  acknowledged,  for  the  people  of  the  north  sorely 
needed  his  help. 

Another  year  passed  by.  Meanwhile  the  ears  of  the  monarchs  had  been 
filled  with  reports  of  Leisler’s  usurpation  and  disloyalty,  and  they  ap- 
pointed Henry  Sloughter  governor  of  New  York,  who  sent  forward  his 
lieutenant,  Ingoldsby,  to  take  possession  of  the  province.  When  that  officer 
arrived  early  in  1691,  he  haughtily  demanded  of  Leisler  the  surrender  of 
the  fort.  He  did  not  deign  to  show  his  credentials,  and  Leisler  properly 
refused  compliance  with  his  demands,  at  the  same  time  treating  Ingoldsby, 
and  the  few  soldiers  whom  he  brought  with  him,  with  respect.  The  aristo- 
cratic party  were  enraged  by  Leisler’s  refusal,  and  for  several  weeks  the  city 
was  fearfully  excited  by  the  violence  of  factions.  And  when,  in  March, 
Governor  Sloughter  arrived,  and  Leisler  sent  him  a letter  loyally  tender- 
ing to  him  the  fort  and  province,  that  functionary,  under  the  influence  of 
the  aristocratic  leaders,  answered  it  by  sending  an  officer  to  arrest  the 
“usurper”  and  Milborne,  and  six  of  the  “inferior  insurgents,”  on  a charge 
of  high  treason.  They  were  taken  to  prison,  and  when  they  were  arraigned, 
the  two  principal  offenders,  denying  the  authority  of  the  court,  refused  to 
plead,  and  appealed  to  the  king.  They  were  condemned,  and  sentenced  to 
death  (as  were,  also,  the  other  six) ; but  Sloughter,  who,  in  his  sober  mo- 
ments, was  just  and  honest,  refused  to  sign  the  death-warrant  until  he  should 
hear  from  the  king.  The  implacable  enemies  of  the  “usurper,”  determined 
on  causing  his  destruction,  invited  the  governor  to  a dinner  party  on 
Staten  Island  on  a bright  day  in  May.  One  of  them  carried  to  the  banquet 
a legally  drawn  death-warrant,  and  when  the  governor  had  been  made  stupid 
by  liquor,  he  was  induced  to  sign  the  fatal  paper.  It  was  sent  to  the  city 


Chap.  V.  EXECUTION  OF  LEISLER  AND  MILBORNE.  361 

that  evening,  and  on  the  following  morning  Leisler  and  Milborne  were 
summoned  to  prepare  for  execution.  Leisler  sent  for  his  wife,  Alice,  and 
their  older  children,  and  after  a sorrowful  parting  with  them,  he  and  his  son- 
in-law  were  led  to  the  gallows  in  a drenching  rain.  They  confessed  their 
errors  of  judgment,  but  denied  all  intentional  wrong-doing.  The  blame- 
lessness of  their  lives  confirmed  their  declarations  of  innocence.  Before 
Sloughter  was  permitted  to  recover  from  his  debauch,  they  were  hanged. 
It  was  a foul  murder.  The  governor  was  tortured  with  remorse  for  his  act, 
and  died  of  delirium  tremens  three  months  afterward. 

Leisler’s  appeal  to  the  king  was  not  sent.  His  son  repeated  it.  The 
result  was  the  return  to  the  families  of  Leisler  and  Milborne  of  their 
confiscated  estates,  and  before  four  years  had  passed,  the  British  Parliament 
declared  them  innocent  of  treason,  by  reversing  the  attainder.  Their  death 
created  a deep  feeling  of  sympathy  for  the  cause  of  popular  sovereignty,  of 
which  they  were  representatives  and  proto-martyrs.  From  that  hour  repub- 
licanism had  a very  vigorous  growth  in  the  province  of  New  York,  and  gave 
future  royal  governors  a great  deal  of  trouble. 

Benjamin  Fletcher  succeeded  Sloughter  as  governor  of  New  York.  He 
was  a man  of  violent  passions,  weak  judgment,  greedy,  dishonest  and 
cowardly,  and  as  dissolute  as  his  predecessor.  How  he  came  to  be  intrusted 
with  the  governorship  at  all,  and  especially  with  the  large  powers  of  com- 
mander of  the  militia  of  Connecticut,  New  York  and  New  Jersey  with  which 
he  was  invested,  is  a problem  not  easily  solved.  He  soon  disgusted  all 
parties ; and  the  recklessness  of  his  administration  caused  more  decided 
resistance  to  imperial  power  than  ever  before.  Among  his  acts  of  petty 
tyranny,  which  displayed  his  folly  and  weakness,  was  his  visit  to  Hartford, 
Avith  Colonel  Bayard  and  others,  late  in  the  autumn  of  1693,  to  assert  his 
disputed  military  authority  there,  by  ordering  out  the  Connecticut  militia 
at  a season  when  parades  had  ceased.  The  charter  of  the  colony  denied 
Fletcher’s  jurisdiction,  and  the  Assembly,  then  in  .session,  promptly  gave 
utterance  to  that  denial  on  this  occasion.  “ I will  not  set  my  foot  out  of 
this  colony,  till  I have  seen  his  majesty’s  commission  obeyed,”  said  Fletcher 
to  the  governor  of  Connecticut.  The  latter  yielded  so  much  as  to  allow 
Captain  Wadsworth  to  call  out  the  train-bands  of  Hartford. 

When  the  troops  were  assembled,  Fletcher  stepped  forward  to  take  the 
command,  and  ordered  Bayard  to  read  his  excellency’s  commission.  At  that 
moment  Captain  Wadsworth  ordered  the  drums  to  be  beaten.  “ Silence !” 
angrily  cried  the  petulant  governor,  and  Bayard  began  to  read  again. 
“ Drum ! drum  ! I say,”  shouted  Wadsworth  ; and  the  sonorous  roll  drowned 
the  voice  of  Bayard.  Fletcher,  in  a rage,  stamped  his  foot  and  cried 


362 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  hi 


"Silence!”  and  threatened  the  captain  with  punishment  for  insubordination. 
Whereupon  Wadsworth  stepped  boldly  in  front  of  the  governor  and  said, 
while  his  hand  rested  on  the  handle  of  his  sword : “ If  my  drummers  are 
interrupted  again,  I’ll  make  the  sunlight  shine  through  you.  We  deny  and 
defy  your  authority.”  The  cowardly  governor  sullenly  folded  up  his  com- 
mission, pocketed  it  and  the  affront,  and  with  his  retinue  returned  to  New 
York  in  a very  angry  mood.  He  complained  to  the  king.  The  matter  was 
compromised  by  making  Fletcher  commander  of  the  Connecticut  militia 
only  in  time  of  war. 


GOVKRNOK  FLETCHER  AND  CAPTAIN  WADSWORTH. 


During  the  whole  of  Fletcher’s  administration  of  seven  years,  party 
rancor,  kindled  by  the  death  of  Lcisler,  burned  intensely,  and,  at  one  time, 
menaced  the  province  with  civil  war.  At  the  same  time  it  was  threatened 
with  a destructive  invasion  by  the  French  and  Indians  from  Canada,  under 
the  guidance  of  the  venerable  Count  Frontenac,  the  energetic  governor  of 
that  province.  These  foes  were  then  traversing  the  wilderness  in  northern 


Chap.  V. 


DEMOCRACY  IN  NEW  YORK. 


363 


New  York,  seeking  for  a passage  through  the  country  of  the  Five  Nations  to 
the  English  settlements  below.  Fortunately  the  governor  listened  to  the 
wise  advice  of  Mayor  Schuyler,  of  Albany,  who  had  a marvellous  influence 
over  the  Iroquois  Confederacy  ; and  under  his  leadership,  about  three  hun- 
dred English  and  as  many  Mohawk  warriors  beat  back  the  foe  to  the  St. 
Lawrence.  They  so  desolated  the  French  settlements  in  the  vicinity  of 
Lake  Champlain,  slaying  about  three  hundred  French  and  Indians  at  the 
north  end  of  the  lake,  that  Frontenac  was  glad  to  remain  quiet  at  Montreal. 

Although  the  New  York  Assembly  was  filled  with  the  bitter  enemies  of 
Leisler,  they,  as  boldly  as  he,  asserted  the  supremacy  of  the  people,  and 
would  suffer  no  encroachments  on  colonial  rights  and  privileges.  They 
rebuked  the  interference  of  the  governor  in  legislation,  by  insisting  upon 
amendments  to  bills,  and  drew  from  him,  on  one  occasion,  the  reproachful 
words  which  tell  of  their  independence  and  firmness ; “ There  never  was  an 
amendment  desired  by  the  Council  Board,  but  what  was  rejected.  It  is  a 
sign  of  a stubborn  ill-temper.”  With  that  “stubborn  ill-temper”  of  the 
Assembly,  Fletcher  was  almost  continually  in  conflict;  and  when,  in  i6g8, 
he  was  superseded  by  the  Earl  of  Bellamont,  he  seemed  as  glad  to  leave  the 
province  as  the  people  were  to  get  rid  of  him. 

Bellamont  was  an  honest  and  energetic  Irish  peer.  He  had  been  on  the 
Committee  of  Parliament  appointed  to  make  inquiry  concerning  the  trial 
and  death  of  Leisler,  and  was  well  acquainted  with  the  questions  which 
divided  the  factions.  He  rebuked  the  little  aristocratic  oligarchy  who  had 
hovered  around  Fletcher;  and  his  wise  and  liberal  course  strengthened  the 
republican  cause.  It  opened  the  way  to  just  legislation,  and  the  ascendency 
of  liberal  men  in  the  Assembly.  That  body,  in  the  year  1700,  on  receiving 
a letter  from  the  king,  asking  them  to  indemnify  the  family  of  Leisler  from 
a “ gracious  sense  of  the  father’s  services  and  sufferings,”  confirmed  the 
verdict  of  Parliament  in  favor  of  the  innocence  of  the  martyr  by  granting 
the  request. 

Bellamont  labored  earnestly  to  reform  existing  abuses  in  the  manage- 
ment of  public  affairs.  It  was  a sharp  . commentary  on  the  character  of  his 
predecessor,  when  he  uttered  the  promise  : “ I will  pocket  none  of  the 
public  money  myself,  nor  shall  there  be  any  embezzlement  by  others.” 
Such  confidence  had  the  Assembly  in  his  integrity,  that  they  voted  a revenue 
for  six  years  and  placed  it  at  the  disposition  of  the  governor.  Notwith- 
standing his  character  was  above  reproach,  it  passed  under  a cloud  because 
of  his  unfortunate  connection  with  the  famous  pirate.  Captain  William  Kidd. 
The  story  may  be  briefly  told  : 

English  commerce  suffered  greatly  from  the  depredations  of  pirates  and 


364 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  III. 


French  privateers.  The  English  government  could  not  suppress  the  evil. 
A company  was  formed  to  do  that  work.  It  was  composed  of  several 
English  noblemen  and  the  king,  and  Robert  Livingston,  the  first  “ Lord  of 
the  Manor,”  and  Governor  Bellamont,  in  America.  They  fitted  out  a galley 
called  the  Adventure,  as  a privateer.  Livingston,  then  in  England,  recom- 
mended Captain  Kidd,  of  New  York,  to  be  her  commander,  and  he  was 
duly  commissioned  as  such  by  the  king.  In  the  Adventure,  Kidd  did  noble 
service  in  protecting  the  commerce  in  American  waters  from  the  sea-robbers. 
He  recruited  from  time  to  time,  until  his  crew  numbered  one  hundred  and 
fifty  men.  Then  he  resolved  to  measure  strength  with  the  pirates  of  the 
Indian  Ocean.  Arming  his  men  with  pistols,  cutlasses  and  pikes,  and  the 
Adventure  with  a swivel  gun  at  her  stem  and  stern,  he  sailed  for  Madagascar, 
where  he  turned  pirate.  He  respected  no  flag,  no  nationality,  no  circum- 
stance ; but  swept  the  seas  for  booty  alone,  roving  over  the  vast  expanse  of 
ocean  from  Farther  India  westward  to  the  coasts  of  South  America.  Thence 
he  sailed  up  among  the  West  India  Islands  and  along  the  shores  of  North 
America,  to  the  vicinity  of  his  home  ; and  on  Gardiner’s  Island,  eastward  of 
Long  Island,  he  buried  much  treasure,  consisting  of  gold,  silver,  and  precious 
stones. 

The  piracies  of  Kidd  were  long  known  in  England  before  the  Company 
noticed  them.  At  length  the  matter  became  so  scandalous  that  they  felt  it 
necessary  to  vindicate  their  character.  The  belief  was  general  that  the  king, 
the  earl,  the  “ lord  of  the  manor,”  and  their  associates  had  shared  the 
plunder  with  Kidd,  and  the  odium  of  complicity  in  piracy  rested  heavily 
upon  them.  They  needed  a scape-goat,  and  Kidd  was  made  the  victim. 
He  appeared  openly  in  the  streets  of  Boston,  unsuspicious  of  real  danger, 
for  he  had  his  king’s  commission  in  his  pocket,  and  Bellamont  was  his  busi- 
ness partner.  But  the  governor,  expressing  horror  at  his  crimes,  ordered  his 
arrest,  and  very  soon  the  pirate  appeared  before  the  earl  a prisoner  in 
irons. 

Kidd  now  saw  that  he  was  to  be  sacrificed,  and  he  sought  to  win  the 
earl’s  favor  and  aid,  by  telling  Bellamont  where  he  had  hidden  the  treasure. 
In  immovable  firmness  at  that  critical  moment  lay  the  governor’s  safety ; 
and  he  turned  a deaf  ear  to  the  prayers  of  the  prisoner  with  bowed  head, 
and  the  entreaties  of  his  wife  who  begged  for  mercy,  human  and  divine,  for 
her  erring  husband.  There  was  a struggle  between  the  pride  and  fear,  and 
the  better  nature  of  Bellamont.  The  former  triumphed.  Kidd  was  sent  to 
England  and  tried  for  murder  and  piracy.  Convicted  of  the  former,  he  was 
hanged.  So  the  penalty  of  the  sins  of  omission,  at  least,  of  the  monarch 
and  nobles  and  rich  civilians,  were  borne  by  the  commoner  on  the  scaffold. 


Chap.  V.  CAREER  OF  A BAD  GOVERNOR.  365 

The  earl  received  the  buried  treasure,  and  at  his  coffers  its  history  ends  in 
impenetrable  mystery. 

The  king  and  the  earl  died  soon  after  Kidd  perished,  and  Sir  Edward 
Hyde,  uncle  of  Queen  Anne,  who  was  then  monarch  of  England,  became 
governor  of  New  York.  He  was  a libertine  and  a knave,  who  cursed  the 
province  with  misrule  for  about  seven  years.  He  was  a bigot,  too,  and 
persecuted  all  denominations  of  Christians  outside  of  the  Church  of  England. 
He  embezzled  the  public  money,  involved  himself  heavily  in  debt,  and  on  all 
occasions  was  the  persistent  enemy  of  popular  freedom.  “ I know  no  right 
which  you  have  as  an  assembly,”  he  said  to  the  representatives  of  the 
people,  “ but  such  as  the  queen  is  pleased  to  allow  you.”  That  was  in  1705, 
the  year  when  that  Assembly  won  the  first  substantial  victory  for  democracy 
over  absolutism  or  despotic  rule.  They  obtained  from  the  queen  permission 
to  make  specific  appropriations  of  incidental  grants  of  money,  and  to 
appoint  their  own  treasurer  to  take  charge  of  extraordinary  supplies.  That 
was  a bold  and  important  step  in  the  direction  of  popular  independence  and 
sovereignty. 

So  the  very  vices  of  the  governor  disciplined  the  people  to  resistance  of 
oppression,  and  secured  to  them  the  recognition  of  rights  which  might  have 
been  postponed  for  many  years.  The  governor,  who  was  weak-minded, 
mean-spirited  and  vacillating,  was  so  overpowered  by  the  indomitable  will 
of  the  people — a hardy,  mixed  race — that  he  meekly  submitted  to  reproof, 
and  in  his  poverty  of  soul  and  purse  humbly  thanked  the  Assembly  for 
simple  justice.  In  1708,  the  queen,  yielding  to  the  wishes  of  the  people, 
recalled  him.  When  he  left  the  chair  of  state  his  creditors  cast  him  into 
prison,  where  he  remained  until  the  death  of  his  father  made  him  Lord 
Cornbury.  Then  he  was  released  by  the  unjust  law  of  England  yet  in  force, 
which  will  not  permit  a peer  of  the  realm,  and  consequently  a member  of 
the  House  of  Lords,  to  be  arrested  for  debt. 

Lord  Lovelace  was  Hyde’s  successor.  With  his  brief  administration 
began  those  contests  between  democracy  and  absolutism  in  the  province  of 
New  York  which  ended  only  with  the  victory  of  the  former  at  the  close  of 
the  old  war  for  independence.  Already  the  political  friends  of  Leisler  had 
achieved  a signal  triumph  over  his  enemies.  Colonel  Bayard  and  others, 
who  had  published  libels  on  the  royal  lieutenant-governor  (Nanfan)  before 
Hyde’s  arrival,  had  been  arrested  by  that  energetic  officer  and  tried  for  and 
convicted  of  treason  under  a law  which  these  men  had  made  in  1691  to  meet 
Leisler’s  case.  Bayard  was  sentenced  to  be  “ hanged,  drawn  and  quartered,” 
but  was  reprieved  until  the  pleasure  of  the  monarch  should  be  known. 
When  Hyde  arrived,  soon  afterward,  he  reversed  the  attainder,  and  the 


366 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  111. 


offender  was  set  at  liberty.  The  power  of  the  self-constituted  aristocracy 
was  broken,  and  their  controlling  influence  disappeared.  When  Lovelace 
came,  and  the  crown  demanded  a permanent  revenue  without  appropriation, 
the  legislature  of  New  York,  in  the  exercise  of  popular  sovereignty  or  rule 
of  the  people,  and  taking  the  ground  that  “ taxation  without  representation 
is  tyranny,”  would  raise  only  an  annual  revenue  for  specific  purposes.  From 
that  time,  until  1732,  the  royal  representatives,  unable  to  resist  the  will  of 
the  people,  as  expressed  by  the  Assembly,  allowed  democratic  principles  to 
grow,  flourish,  and  bear  fruit. 

From  Lovelace  to  Cosby,  there  were  three  governors — Robert  Hunter, 
William  Burnet  and  John  Montgomery — and  three  acting  gov^ernors.  The 
first  was  a literary  man,  fond  of  good  cheer,  but  unfitted  by  temperament  to 
be  governor  of  New  York  at  that  crisis.  He  brought  with  him  three  thou- 
sand German  Lutherans  from  the  Palatinate  of  the  Rhine,  who  had  been 
driven  from  their  homes  by  the  persecution  of  Louis  the  Fourteenth.  These 
settled  in  different  parts  of  the  province  of  New  York,  and  in  Pennsylvania. 
They  were  chiefly  the  ancestors  of  the  German  population  of  the  latter 
State. 

Hunter  and  his  council,  under  instructions,  insisted  that  the  popular 
Assembly,  like  themselves,  existed  only  by  the  mere  grace  of  the  crown. 
The  Assembly  as  vehemently  insisted  that  they  possessed  an  inherent  right 
to  legislate,  that  was  derived  not  from  any  commission  or  grant  from  the 
crown,  but  “ from  the  free  choice  and  election  of  the  people  who  ought  not, 
nor  justly  can  be,  divested  of  their  property  without  their  consent.”  The 
governor  could  not  assent  to  this  doctrine.  The  Assembly  were  inflexible ; 
and  Hunter’s  administration  was  marked  by  violent  political  contests 
between  the  chief  magistrate  and  the  representatives  of  the  people.  “ I 
have  spent  three  years,”  he  wrote  at  one  time,  “ in  such  torture  and  vexa- 
tion that  nothing  in  life  can  make  amends  for  it.”  He  loved  his  ease,  and 
sighed  for  quiet.  Failing  health  compelled  him  to  return  to  England  in 
1719,  when  he  left  the  government  in  the  hands  of  Peter  Schuyler,  the 
oldest  member  of  the  council.  That  accomplished  gentleman  completely 
restored  the  friendship  between  the  English  and  the  Five  Nations,  which  had 
been  disturbed. 

Hunter  was  succeeded  by  William  Burnet,  son  of  the  celebrated  Bishop 
Burnet.  For  awhile  he  was  very  popular,  but  at  length  he  incurred  the  dis- 
pleasure of  a powerful  party  of  merchants  who  controlled  the  Assembly, 
and  his  position  was  made  so  very  uncomfortable  that  he  was  transferred  to’ 
the  government  of  Massachusetts.  It  was  during  his  administration,  that 
William  Bradford,  in  the  autumn  of  1725,  established  the  first  public  news- 


Chap.  V. 


AN  UNJUST  MAGISTRACY. 


367 


paper  in  New  York.  He  had  set  up  the  first  printing-house  in  the  province, 
in  1693,  when  Fletcher  was  governor.  His  paper  was  entitled  “The  New 
York  Weekly  Gazette.”  John  Montgomery  succeeded  Burnet  in  1728. 
Death  closed  his  uneventful  administration,  in  the  summer  of  1731,  when 
Rip  Van  Dam,  the  senior  member  of  the  council,  took  charge  of  public 
affairs  until  the  arrival  of  William  Cosby  as  governor,  in  1732. 

Cosby  was  avaricious  and  arbitrary  by 
nature,  and  opportunity  made  him  exercise 
his  passions  almost  without  stint.  His  first 
act  was  to  demand  of  Van  Dam  an  equal 
share  of  that  councillor’s  salary  received 
by  him  while  acting  as  governor.  “ Give 
me  half  the  perquisites  of  your  office  from 
the  time  of  your  appointment  until  your 
arrival,”  said  Van  Dam,  “and  I will  agree 
to  your  proposition.”  This  fair  proposal 
was  rejected,  and  Van  Dam  refused  com- 
pliance with  the  governor’s  requisition. 

Cosby  sued  him  in  the  Supreme  Court.  A 
majority  of  the  judges  were  the  governor’s 
personal  friends,  and  gave  judgment 
against  Van  Dam.  Chief-Justice  Morris 
decided  against  the  governor.  The  latter 
removed  the  chief  justice  without  consult- 
ing his  council,  and  put  James  De  Lancey 
in  his  place. 

The  sympathies  of  the  people  were 
with  Van  Dam,  and  the  governor’s  high- 
handed proceedings  aroused  their  indig- 
nation to  an  intense  pitch.  They  induced 
John  Peter  Zenger,  who  had  been  an  ap- 
prentice and  business  partner  with  Bradford,  to  establish  a newspaper  to 
be  the  organ  of  the  democratic  party.  He  did  so  in  November,  1733,  calling 
it  the  “ New  York  Weekly  Journal,”  with  Van  Dam  behind  him  as  financial 
supporter.  Bradford’s  paper  w’as  then  controlled  by  the  government. 

The  “ Journal  ” made  vigorous  warfare  upon  the  governor  and  his  politi- 
cal friends.  It  kept  up  a continual  fire  of  squibs,  lampoons  and  satires,  and 
finally  charged  them  wdth  violating  the  rights  of  the  people,  the  assumption 
of  tyrannical  powder,  and  the  perversion  of  their  official  stations  for  selfish 
purposes. 


\ 


BURNING  OF  ZENGER's  PAPERS. 


368 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  III. 


The  officials  endured  these  attacks  lor  a year.  In  the  autumn  of  1734, 
the  governor  and  council  ordered  Zenger’s  papers,  containing  his  offensive 
articles,  to  be  burned  publicly  by  the  common  hangman,  and  he  was  arrested 
and  thrown  into  prison  on  a charge  of  libelling  the  government.  The  Grand 
Jury  refused  to  find  a bill  of  indictment  for  this  offence,  but  he  was  held  by 
another  process,  and  was  kept  in  jail  until  early  in  the  next  August,  when 
he  was  brought  to  trial  in  the  City  Hall,  New  York.  The  case  excited 
intense  interest  throughout  the  whole  country,  for  it  involved  the  great 
question  of  liberty  of  speech  and  of  the  press. 

Meanwhile  an  association  called  the  “ Sons  of  Liberty  ” had  worked 
diligently  for  Zenger.  The  venerable  Andrew  Hamilton,  of  Philadelphia, 
then  eighty  years  of  age  and  the  foremost  lawyer  in  the  country,  was 
engaged  as  the  prisoner’s  counsel.  On  the  hot  morning  when  the  trial  com- 
menced, the  court-room  was  densely  crowded.  Chief-Justice  De  Lancey 
presided.  A jury  was  empaneled.  The  prisoner  pleaded  “ Not  Guilty,” 
but  boldly  admitted  the  publication  of  the  alleged  libel,  and  offered  full 
proof  of  its  justification.  The  attorney-general  had  just  risen  to  oppose  the 
introduction  of  such  proof,  when  the  venerable  Hamilton  unexpectedly 
entered  the  room,  his  long  white  hair  flowing  over  his  shoulders,  instead  of 
being  queued  in  the  fashion  of  the  day.  The  excited  audience,  most  of 
them  in  sympathy  with  the  prisoner,  arose  to  their  feet,  and  in  spite  of  the 
voice  and  frowns  of  the  chief-justice,  waved  their  hats  and  shouted  loud 
huzzas.  When  silence  prevailed,  the  attorney-general  took  the  ground  that 
facts  in  justification  of  an  alleged  libel  were  not  admissible  in  evidence. 
The  court  sustained  him. 

When  Hamilton  arose,  a murmur  of  applause  ran  through  the  crowd. 
In  a few  eloquent  sentences  he  scattered  to  the  winds  the  sophistries  which 
supported  the  pernicious  doctrine  that  “ the  greater  the  truth  the  greater 
is  the  libel.”  He  declared  that  the  jury  were  themselves  judges  of  the  facts 
and  the  law  ; that  they  were  competent  to  judge  of  the  guilt  or  innocence 
of  the  accused,  and  reminded  them  that  they  were  the  sworn  protectors  of 
the  rights,  liberties  and  privileges  of  their  fellow-citizens,  which,  in  this 
instance,  had  been  violated  by  a most  outrageous  and  vindictive  series  of 
persecutions.  He  conjured  them  to  remember  that  it  was  for  them  to  inter- 
pose between  the  tyrannical  and  arbitrary  violators  of  the  law  and  their 
intended  victim,  and  to  assert,  by  their  verdict,  in  the  fullest  manner,  the 
freedom  of  speech  and  of  the  press,  and  the  supremacy  of  the  people  over 
their  wanton  and  powerful  oppressors. 

Notwithstanding  the  charge  of  the  chief-justice  was  wholly  adverse  to  the 
doctrines  of  the  great  advocate,  the  jury,  after  brief  deliberation,  returned  a 


Chap.  V. 


THE  TRIUMPH  OF  RIGHT. 


369 


unanimous  verdict  of  “ Not  Guilty.”  Then  a shout  of  triumph  went  up 
from  the  multitude,  and  Hamilton  was  borne  out  of  the  court-room  upon 
the  shoulders  of  the  people  to  a grand  entertainment  which  had  been  pre- 
pared for  him.  On  the  following  day  a public  dinner  was  given  him  by  the 
citizens.  At  the  close  of  September  following,  the  corporation  of  the  city 
of  New  York  presented  to  Mr.  Hamilton  the  Freedom  of  the  City  and  their 


A POPULAR  TRIUMPH  CELEBRATED. 


thanks,  in  a gold  box  weighing  five-and-a-half  ounces,  made  for  the  occasion. 
In  this  document  they  cordially  thanked  him  for  his  “ learned  and  generous 
defence  of  the  rights  of  mankind,  and  the  liberty  of  the  press,”  and  for  his 
signal  service  which  “ he  cheerfully  undertook,  under  great  indisposition  of 
body,  and  generously  performed,  refusing  any  fee  or  reward.” 

This  triumph  of  the  popular  cause — this  vindication  of  the  freedom  of 


370 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  111. 


the  press — this  evidence  of  the  determination  of  the  people  to  protect  their 
champions,  and  this  success  of  an  organization  in  its  infancy  which  appeared 
in  power  thirty  years  later  under  the  same  name  of  “ Sons  of  Liberty,”  was 
a sure  prophecy  of  that  political  independence  of  the  colonies  which  was  so 
speedily  fulfilled.  Yet  the  stupid  governor,  staggered  by  the  blow,  could 
not  understand  the  meaning  of  the  prophecy ; and  only  his  death,  a few 
months  after  the  trial,  put  an  end  to  his  vindictive  proceedings. 

From  the  arrival  of  Cosby  until  the  beginning  of  the  French  and  Indian 
war  at  the  middle  of  the  century,  the  history  of  the  province  of  New  York 
is  composed  chiefly  of  the  records  of  party  strife.  Only  one  episode  in  that 
history  demands  special  attention  here.  It  is  known  in  our  annals  as  the 
“Negro  Plot;”  as  unsubstantial  in  fact  as  was  the  “Salem  Witchcraft.” 
Several  incendiary  fires  had  occurred  in  quick  succession  in  the  city  of  New 
York,  in  1741.  The  idea  suddenly  took  possession  of  the  minds  of  the 
inhabitants  that  it  was  the  work  of  negroes,  who  had  conspired  to  burn  and 
plunder  the  city,  murder  the  white  inhabitants  and  set  up  a government 
under  a man  of  their  own  color.  A fearful  panic  ensued.  Suspected 
negroes  of  both  sexes,  and  some  white  men  and  women,  were  arrested  and 
tried ; and  before  the  excitement  was  over,  four  white  people  were  hanged, 
and  eleven  negroes  were  burned.  Eighteen  of  the  latter  were  hanged,  and 
fifty  were  sent  to  the  West  Indies  and  sold  as  slaves.  On  the  site  of  the 
present  City  Hall,  three  negroes  were  burnt  at  the  stake  at  one  time.  Two 
of  them  were  men  and  one  was  a woman.  All  who  suffered  at  that  time 
were,  undoubtedly,  innocent  victims  of  terror  created  by  imaginary  danger. 


CHAPTER  VI. 


GOVERNOR  BRADFORD — THE  FIRST  PUBLIC  THANKSGIVING  IN  NEW  ENGLAND — FRIENDSHIP  WITH 
THE  INDIANS — CANONICUS  AND  HIS  CHALLENGE— WESTON’s  COLONY  AND  ITS  CAREER- 
SOCIAL  CHANGES — ENTERPRISE  OF  THE  PILGRIMS — RELIGIOUS  MATTERS — COLONY  AT  CAPE 
ANN — ENDICOTT  AT  SALEM — HIS  AUSTERITY — MASSACHUSETTS  BAY  COLONY— GOVERNOR  WIN- 
THROP  AND  THE  INDIANS — REPUBLICAN  AND  REPRESENTATIVE  GOVERNMENTS  ESTABLISHED — 
INTERCOURSE  WITH  OTHER  COLONIES — PERSECUTION  IN  ENGLAND  AND  INTOLERANCE  IN 
MASSACHUSETTS — PREPARATION  TO  RESIST  TYRANNY. 

WILLIAM  BRADFORD,  the  first  historian  of  Massachusetts. 

was  the  official  successor  of  John  Carver,  the  earliest  governor 
of  the  Plymouth  colony.  He  entered  upon  his  duties  as  chief- 
magistrate  a few  weeks  before  the  States-General  of  Holland  chartered  the 
Dutch  West  India  Company,  under  whose  auspices  the  province  of  New 
Netherland,  as  we  have  observed,  was  first  settled  by  Europeans. 

Bradford  was  a native  of  Ansterfield,  Yorkshire,  in  the  north  of  England, 
where  he  was  born  in  the  year  1588.  His  pecuniary  circumstances  were 
easy,  when  he  followed  persecuted  Puritans  to  Holland  and  became  fully 
identified  with  them  in  exile.  From  early  life  he  had  been  accustomed  to 
their  teachings : and  at  the  age  of  seventeen  years,  he  attempted  to  fly  to 
the  Netherlands,  with  some  others,  whither  their  harassed  brethren  had  gone. 
Betrayed,  he  was  seized  and  imprisoned  at  Boston,  in  Lincolnshire,  for 
awhile,  but  finally  escaped  and  joined  the  fugitives  at  Amsterdam,  where  he 
learned  the  silk  weaver’s  art  and  pursued  it.  On  receiving  his  patrimony,  he 
entered  into  unsuccessful  commercial  operations,  and  lost  a greater  portion 
of  it.  When  the  establishment  of  a free  colony  in  America  was  projected 
at  Leyden,  he  was  one  of  the  most  zealous  promoters  of  the  measure ; and 
he  and  his  young  wife  were  among  the  earliest  emigrants  to  that  land  of 
promise.  Before  a site  was  selected  for  a settlement,  and  while  the  May- 
Floiver  was  yet  riding  at  anchor  in  Cape  Cod  Bay,  Mrs.  Bradford  fell  into 
the  sea  and  was  drowned.  That  was  the  first  death  among  the  Pilgrims 
after  their  arrival  on  the  coast  of  America.  Shrewd,  wise,  active,  humane 
and  generous,  Bradford  was  very  popular  ; and  he  was  in  the  chair  of  state 
almost  continually  from  1621  until  his  death  in  1657,  a period  of  thirty-six 
years. 


372 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  III. 


We  have  observed  toward  the  close  of  Chapter  III  of  the  Second  Book, 
that  the  Pilgrims  at  Plymouth  rejoiced  in  an  abundance  of  food  in  the 
autumn  of  1621,  the  first  year  of  their  settlement.  Thereby  their  hearts 
were  filled  with  gratitude,  and  after  the  fruits  of  their  labors  had  all  been 
gathered,  the  governor  sent  out  huntsmen  to  bring  in  supplies  for  a general 
and  common  thanksgiving.  That  was  the  first  celebration  of  the  great  New 
England  festival  of  Thanksgiving,  now  annually  held  in  almost  every  State 
and  Territory  of  the  Union  in  the  month  of  November.  Great  quantities 
of  wild  turkeys  and  deer  were  gathered  at  Plymouth,  and  for  three  days  the 
Pilgrims  indulged  in  rejoicing,  firing  of  guns  and  feasting — entertaining,  at 
the  same  time.  King  Massasoit  and  ninety  of  his  dusky  followers,  who  con- 
tributed five  deer  to  the  banquets.  Seven  substantial  houses  had  been 
built  during  the  summer;  the  inhabitants  were  in  good  health;  a few 
emigrants  from  England  had  come  in  a second  ship,  and  there  were  happy 
homes  in  the  wilderness  the  ensuing  winter.  Among  the  new  comers  was 


AN  INDIAN  CHALLENGE. 


the  Rev.  Robert  Cushman,  one  of  the  founders  of  the  colony,  who,  in 
December,  1621,  preached  the  first  sermon  in  New  England. 

Governor  Bradford’s  chief  anxiety,  at  first,  was  for  the  establishment  of 
friendly  relations  between  the  English  and  the  Indians.  That  was  already 
secured  with  Massasoit  and  his  people;  but  Canonicus,  the  haughty  chief 
of  the  Narragansets,  living  on  Canonicut  Island  opposite  the  site  of  New- 
port, was  loth  to  be  friendly  at  first.  To  show  his  contempt  for  and  defiance 
of  the  English,  he  sent  a messenger  to  Governor  Bradford  with  a bundle  of 
arrows  in  a rattlesnake’s  skin.  That  was  at  the  dead  of  winter,  1622.  It 
was  a challenge  to  engage  in  war  in  the  spring.  Like  the  venomous  serpent 
that  wore  the  skin,  the  symbols  of  hostility  gave  warning  before  striking — a 
virtue  seldom  exercised  by  the  Indians.  Bradford  acted  wisely  on  the 
occasion.  He  accepted  the  challenge  to  fight  the  multitude  of  savages,  by 
sending  the  significant  quiver  back,  filled  with  gunpowder  and  shot.  “ What 


PURITANS  BARRICADING  THEIR  HOUSE  AGAINST  INDIANS. 


Chap.  VI. 


UNWORTHY  IMMIGRANTS. 


373 


can  these  things  be?”  inquired  the  ignorant  and  curious  savage  mind,  as 
they  were  carried  from  village  to  village  in  superstitious  awe  as  objects  of 
evil  omen.  They  had  heard  of  the  great  guns  at  the  seaside,  and  they 
dared  not  keep  the  mysterious  symbols  of  the  governor’s  anger,  but  sent 
them  back  to  Plymouth  in  token  of  peace.  The  pride,  if  not  the  hatred,  of 
Canonicus  was  subdued,  and  he  and  other  chiefs  humbly  begged  the  English 
for  friendship.  But  the  alarmed  colony  spent  the  remainder  of  the  winter 
and  spring  in  fear,  for  Canonicus  could  send  five  thousand  warriors  to  the 
field,  it  was  said.  The  English,  with  much  labor,  built  the  fort  mentioned 
in  Chapter  III  of  the  Second  Book,  which  served,  also,  for  a meeting-house. 
And  when  tidings  came  of  the  massacre  by  the  Indians  in  Virginia,  in  April 
(see  Chapter  I,  Book  III),  every  man  worked  diligently.  Their  houses  were 
all  barricaded,  and  “ watch  and  ward  were  constantly  kept.” 

Not  long  after  this,  the  first  war  between  the  English  and  savages  broke 
out.  Weston,  a wealthy  and  dissatisfied  member  of  the  Plymouth  Com- 
pany, sent  over  a colony  of  sixty  unmarried  men  to  plant  a settlement  on 
his  own  account,  somewhere  on  the  shores  of  Massachusetts  Bay.  He 
boasted  of  the  superior  strength  of  such  a settlement  by  bachelors  to  that 
of  Plymouth,  which  was  “ weakened  by  women  and  children.”  They  were 
mostly  idle  and  disorderly  young  men  like  those  who  went  early  to  Virginia. 
Many  of  them  were  very  dissolute.  After  living  several  weeks  upon  the 
scanty  means  of  the  Plymouth  families,  they  went  to  the  site  of  Weymouth, 
where  they  began  a settlement.  Idle  and  wasteful,  they  were  soon  compelled 
to  confront  gaunt  Famine ; and  beggary  and  starvation  were  the  alternatives 
presented  to  them.  They  exasperated  the  Indians  by  plundering  their  corn- 
fields and  other  sources  of  supplies.  The  savages,  failing  to  discriminate 
between  the  righteous  and  the  unrighteous,  or  fearing  the  vengeance  of  the 
other  white  people  if  they  should  destroy  the  young  men  at  Weymouth, 
formed  a plot  for  the  extermination  of  all  the  English  in  their  land.  The 
peril  was  great,  and  was  discovered  only  a few  days  before  the  fatal  blow 
was  to  be  struck.  Massasoit,  who  had  been  nursed  into  health  after  a deadly 
sickness,  by  the  brave  hands  of  Edward  Winslow,  revealed  the  plot  to  his 
benefactor.  The  Plymouth  people  immediately  sent  Captain  Standish,  with 
a few  soldiers,  to  protect  the  offending  Englishmen,  and  in  a contest  that 
ensued  an  Indian  chief  and  several  of  his  followers  were  killed.  The  victor 
carried  the  chief’s  head  upon  a pole,  in  triumph,  into  Plymouth,  and  placed 
it  on  the  palisades  of  the  fort.  When  the  good  Robinson,  at  Leyden,  heard 
of  this,  he  wrote:  “ 0,  how  happy  a thing  it  would  have  been,  had  you  con- 
verted some,  before  you  killed  any.”  If  they  were  not  “ converted,”  the 
savages  were  very  much  frightened,  and  sued  for  peace.  So  the  settlement 


374 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  111. 


of  strong  unmarried  men  was  saved  by  the  Plymouth  people,  who  were 
“ weakened  by  many  women  and  children.”  The  childless  Lord  Bacon,  in 
one  of  his  essays,  says : “ Certainly  the  best  works  and  of  greatest  merit  for 
the  public  have  proceeded  from  the  unmarried  or  childless  men.”  Weston’s 
experience  was  the  reverse.  His  colony,  too  weak  to  endure,  was  broken  up 
within  a year  after  it  was  planted,  and  the  most  worthless  of  its  members, 
happily  for  the  Plymouth  people,  returned  to  England. 


TRIUMPHAL  MARCH  INTO  PLYMOUTH. 


We  have  observed  (Chapter  III,  Book  II)  that  the  Pilgrims  and  London 
merchants  and  others,  formed  a partnership  in  making  the  settlement  of  the 
Plymouth  colony.  The  speculation,  as  such,  was  a failure.  Ill-feeling  arose 
between  the  two  classes  of  proprietors.  The  merchants  and  others  wished 
to  dissolve  the  league,  whose  prescribed  term  of  existence  was  seven  years. 


Chap.  VI. 


CONDITION  OF  THE  NEW  ENGLAND  SETTLERS. 


375 


It  continued  to  the  end  of  that  time,  when  the  colonists  purchased  the 
interest  of  their  partners  in  England.  Then  the  community  system,  or  the 
common  sharing  of  labor  and  its  products,  was  abandoned,  and  the  whole 
property  was  divided  among  the  inhabitants.  New  incentives  to  industry 
were  thereby  created  ; and  very  soon  the  blessings  of  plenty  drawn  from  the 
unfruitful  soil  of  New  England,  rewarded  labor  there.  The  cultivators  of 
the  soil  became  free-holders,  and  general  prosperity  was  soon  manifested. 

The  restless  enterprise  of  the  children  of  the  Pilgrims  of  our  day  marked 
the  “ Fathers.”  While  their  number  was  few  and  their  strength  feeble,  they 
stretched  forth  their  hands  to  grasp  other  landed  possessions.  At  an  early 
day  they  acquired  rights  of  domain  on  Cape  Anne  and  on  the  borders  of  the 
Kennebec.  Nothing  but  the  interfering  spasms  of  the  dying  Plymouth 
Company,  of  whom  the  veteran  Gorges  was  the  latest  survivor,  prevented 
their  extending  the  jurisdiction  of  Plymouth  over  all  New  England.  His 
efforts  to  sustain  the  claims  and  existence  of  the  Company,  and  his  ambitious 
aspirations  in  his  old  age  as  governor-general  of  New  England  and  lord 
proprietor  of  Maine,  have  been  already  considered  in  the  Fifth  Chapter  of 
the  Second  Book. 

The  colony  had  been  spared  the  affliction  of  a governor  sent  by  Gorges, 
and  from  the  beginning  had  enjoyed  self-government  without  the  royal 
sanction.  That  government  was  simple.  At  first  the  only  officers  were  a 
governor  and  one  assistant  magistrate.  In  1624,  five  assistants  were  chosen, 
and  in  1630,  when  the  colony  numbered  about  five  hundred  souls,  seven 
assistants  were  chosen  by  the  whole  people.  This  pure  democracy  existed 
at  Plymouth  until  1639,  a period  of  nineteen  years,  when  a representative 
government  was  established  and  a pastor  was  chosen  as  a spiritual  guide. 

From  the  beginning  the  Pilgrims  had  cause  for  uneasiness  concerning 
religious  matters.  They  greatly  desired  to  have  their  pastor,  Mr.  Robinson, 
come  over  from  Leyden,  but  the  greed  of  their  speculating  partners  in 
England  prevented  his  transportation  to  America.  He  was  regarded  as  the 
head  of  the  English  Non-conformists  or  Puritans,  though  away  in  Holland. 
To  please  the  Crown  and  the  Church  of  England,  for  purposes  of  gain, 
these  partners  persistently  opposed  his  emigration  to  America  in  any  English 
vessel,  and  he  never  saw  his  beloved  church  that  was  planted  in  the  wilder- 
ness. Meanwhile  efforts  were  made,  through  the  deception  of  false  pre- 
tences, to  bring  the  Pilgrims  under  the  control  of  the  Church  of  England, 
but  failed.  A hypocrite  named  Lyford  was  sent  there  to  preach,  and  he  and 
a confederate  (John  Oldham)  conspired  to  overthrow  both  the  political  and 
religious  system  at  Plymouth.  Their  wickedness  was  discovered,  and  on 
being  arraigned  before  Governor  Bradford,  Lyford  “ burst  into  tears  and  con- 

25 


376 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  III. 


fessed  that  he  was  afraid  that  he  was  a reprobate.”  His  confederate  was 
banished,  but  Lyford  was  pardoned  on  making  loud  professions  of  penitence. 
They  were  insincere ; and  being  caught  in  seditious  tricks  again,  he  was 
deposed  from  the  ministry  and  banished  from  Plymouth. 

The  Pilgrims  regarded  Mr.  Robinson  as  their  pastor  until  his  death  in 
1625.  Religious  services  at  Plymouth  had  been  conducted,  from  the  be- 
ginning, by  Elder  Brewster,  in  the  form  of  prayer  and  exhortation,  and  were 
kept  up  until  a regular  pastor  was  provided.  Some  of  their  exercises  were 
conducted  in  a democratic  manner.  On  Sunday  afternoons,  a question  would 
be  propounded  by  the  elder,  to  which  all  had  a right  to  speak.  In  the 
exercise  of  private  judgment  these  religious  meetings  sometimes  became  the 
arena  of  intemperate  debates ; and  after  a pastor  was  called,  it  was  difficult 
to  retain  one  there,  because  of  the  restiveness  of  the  people  under  even 
moderate  discipline. 

The  independent  colony  of  Weston  failed,  but  another  was  attempted  at 
Cape  Ann,  where  Gloucester  now  stands,  by  the  Rev.  John  White,  rector  of 
Trinity  Church,  Dorchester,  England,  and  several  influential  persons  whom 
he  persuaded  to  join  him.  They  expected  to  found  there  a flourishing  fish- 
ing colony,  but  the  enterprise  failed  and  was  abandoned.  White  was  not 
disheartened.  He  infused  his  own  spirit  into  other  powerful  citizens,  whose 
names  afterward  appeared  conspicuous  in  the  annals  of  New  England.  They 
formed  a Company  in  1628,  and  purchased  a tract  of  land  extending  from 
three  miles  north  of  the  Merrimac  River  to  three  miles  south  of  the  Charles 
River,  and  westward  to  the  South  Sea  or  Pacific  Ocean. 

In  the  summer  of  that  year,  the  Company  sent  John  Endicott,  one  of 
their  number  (including  his  wife  and  children),  with  emigrants,  to  settle  on 
the  domain.  Endicott  was  commissioned  governor  or  general  manager  of 
the  colony ; and  then  he  began  his  long  and  eventful  career  in  New  England. 
He  was  then  forty  years  of  age;  possessed  of  an  imperious  and  unyielding 
will;  was  a most  rigid  Puritan  in  thought  and  manner;  benevolent  though 
austere,  and  was  intolerant  of  all  dissenting  opinions. 

Endicott  conducted  the  little  colony  to  Naumkeag,  where  some  of 
White’s  men  from  Cape  Ann  were  seated.  After  settling  some  disputes 
about  the  right  of  occupation  and  control,  he  named  the  place  Salem,  the 
Hebrew  word  for  “ peaceful.”  There  he  soon  displayed  his  stern  opposition 
to  all  “ vain  amusements,”  by  causing  a May-pole  to  be  cut  down,  which  the 
Dorchester  people  had  set  up.  He  lectured  them  on  the  folly  of  amuse- 
ments, and  warned  them  to  “ look  there  should  be  better  walking.” 

Several  persons  of  wealth  and  influence  in  Boston,  Lincolnshire,  and 
elsewhere,  joined  the  company  early  in  1629,  and  in  March  a royal  charter 


Chap.  VI. 


MASSACHUSETTS  BAY  COLONY. 


377 


was  granted  creating  them  a corporation  under  the  name  of  “ The  Governor 
and  Company  of  the  Massachusetts  Bay,  in  New  England.”  The  adminis- 
tration of  public  affairs  was  intrusted  to  a governor,  deputy,  and  eighteen 
assistants  or  magistrates,  who  were  to  be  elected  annually  by  the  stock- 
holders of  the  Company.  A general  assembly  of  the  freemen  of  the  colony 
was  to  be  held  at  least  four  times  a year  to  legislate  for  the  colony.  The 
king  claimed  no  jurisdiction,  for  he  regarded  the  whole  affair  as  a trading 


CUTTING  DOWN  THE  MAY-POLE. 


operation,  and  not  as  the  founding  of  an  empire.  He  could  not  compre- 
hend the  moral  and  religious  movements  going  on  around  him,  and  was  lavish 
of  privileges  which  he  could  not  easily  recall.  The  charter  conferred  upon 
the  colonists  of  Massachusetts  Bay  all  the  rights  of  English  subjects  without 
exacting  many  corresponding  duties ; and  it  was  afterward  used  as  a text  for 
many  powerful  discourses  against  the  usurpations  of  royalty. 


378 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  III. 


The  Company  were  careful  to  make  “ plentiful  provision  of  godly  minis- 
ters ” for  the  colony,  and  in  the  summer  after  Endicott’s  departure,  three  of 
these — Skelton,  Higginson  and  Bright — were  sent  to  Salem,  with  about  two 
hundred  additional  settlers.  Soon  after  their  arrival  a church  was  organized 
by  the  choice  of  Samuel  Skelton  as  pastor,  and  Francis  Higginson  as  teacher 
or  assistant.  They  were  ordained  by  a simple  ceremonial.  Mr.  Higginson 
and  three  or  four  of  the  gravest  men  laid  their  hands  on  Mr.  Skelton’s  head, 
while  he  knelt,  and  then  prayed.  Mr.  Higginson  was  consecrated  by  Mr. 
Skelton  in  the  same  way.  Mr.  Higginson  then  drew  up  a confession  of  faith 
and  plan  of  church  government,  and  an  invitation  was  sent  to  the  Plymouth 
people  to  be  present  at  a formal  organization  of  the  society.  On  a warm 
day,  the  6th  of  August,  the  people  were  gathered  in  the  shade  of  great  elms 
at  Salem,  when  the  two  ministers  preached,  and  thirty  persons  signed  the 
covenant  and  associated  themselves  as  a church.  Governor  Bradford  and 
others,  who  came  from  Plymouth  by  sea,  did  not  reach  Salem  until  the 
ceremony  was  ended,  when  they  “ came  into  the  assembly  and  gave  them 
the  right  hand  of  fellowship.”  So  was  founded  the  first  church  in  New 
England.  They  claimed  that  they  were  not  Separatists — that  is,  separated 
from  the  Church  of  England — but  a better  part  of  it,  discarding  its  corrup- 
tions and  trying  to  reform  it.  Yet  in  all  outward  things  they  were  Separa- 
tists. Endicott  and  his  friends  punished  two  brothers  named  Browne  for 
worshipping  in  accordance  with  the  prescriptions  and  rituals  of  the  Book  of 
Common  Prayer,  the  governor  declaring  the  liturgy  and  ceremonials  to  be 
“ sinful  corruptions  of  the  worship  of  God.”  The  offenders  persisted  and 
Endicott  sent  them  back  over  the  ocean,  telling  them  that  New  England  was 
no  place  for  such  as  they.  The  Company  did  not  disclaim  the  act,  but 
simply  asked  Endicott  to  be  discreet,  for  fear  of  offending  the  home  govern- 
ment. 

This  high-handed  act  unreproved,  established  the  fact  that  the  authori- 
ties of  Massachusetts  might,  at  their  discretion,  exclude  all  persons  from  the 
colony  who  did  not  conform  to  the  pattern  of  morals  and  religion  prescribed 
by  the  governor  and  ministers.  This  was  the  beginning  of  that  blind  intoler- 
ance of  the  Puritans  of  Massachusetts,  which  appears  as  a dark  stain  upon 
the  annals  of  New  England.  We  must  judge  those  early  settlers  leniently 
by  the  standard  of  ethics  which  prevailed  in  civilized  society  at  that  time. 

Toward  the  close  of  the  summer  of  1629,  an  important  measure  was 
adopted  by  the  Company,  which  gave  a mighty  impulse  to  emigration  to 
Massachusetts.  It  was  the  transferring  of  the  government  of  the  colony 
from  the  Company  to  the  people  there,  and  so  establishing  a democracy  like 
that  at  Plymouth.  That  was  done  on  the  29th  of  August.  The  old  officers 


Chap.  VI. 


LEADING  MEN  IN  MASSACHUSETTS. 


379 


in  the  colony  resigned,  and  John  Winthrop,  one  of  the  many  wealthy  and 
influential  heads  of  families  who  had  determined  to  emigrate  to  Massachu- 
setts in  the  event  of  such  a change  in  its  political  affairs,  was  chosen  gov- 
ernor. John  Humphrey,  brother-in-law  to  the  Earl  of  Lincoln,  was  chosen 
deputy-governor,  but,  on  the  eve  of  embarkation,  his  place  was  filled  by 
Thomas  Dudley,  a veteran  soldier  and  then  the  manager  of  the  estates  of  the 
earl.  Eighteen  assistants  were  also  chosen. 

Winthrop  was  then  forty-two  years  of  age.  He  was  a native  of  Groton, 
Suffolk  county,  where  he  had  considerable  landed  property.  A lawyer  by 
profession,  he  had  moved  in  the  higher  circles  of  society  among  eminent 
men  in  church  and  state,  by  which  means  he  became  learned  in  statesman- 
ship and  polished  in  manners.  Dudley  had  served  as  a soldier  under  Henry 
the  Fourth  of  France  thirty  years  before  and  “was  old  enough,”  Palfrey 
says,  “ to  have  lent  a shrill  voice  to  the  huzzas  at  the  defeat  of  the  Armada.” 
Of  the  assistants,  Johnson,  Saltonstall,  Eaton,  Bradstreet  and  Vassall  were 
the  most  conspicuous.  Isaac  Johnson  was  the  richest  of  the  emigrants,  and 
son-in-law  of  the  Earl  of  Lincoln.  Sir  Robert  Saltonstall,  of  Halifax, 
Yorkshire,  was  an  opulent  supporter  of  the  enterprise.  Theophilus  Eaton 
was  an  eminent  merchant  of  London,  and  a polished  courtier  who  had  been 
the  earliest  minister  of  Charles  the  First,  in  Denmark.  Simon  Bradstreet 
was  the  son  of  a Puritan  minister  in  Lincolnshire  and  college  graduate,  and 
William  Vassall  was  an  opulent  West  India  merchant. 

Winthrop  and  his  companions,  consisting  of  about  three  hundred  families, 
sailed  from  Yarmouth  in  the  spring  of  1630.  The  governor  was  in  the 
Arabella,  a ship  carrying  twenty-eight  guns,  and  so  named  in  compliment  to 
Arabella  Johnson,  wife  of  one  of  the  assistants.  Before  leaving  the  port, 
the  governor,  in  behalf  of  his  company,  sent  an  address,  drawn  by  the  Rev. 
Mr.  White,  to  “ the  rest  of  the  brethren  in  and  of  the  Church  of  England,” 
saying  that  they  esteemed  it  a favor  to  call  that  church  their  “ dear 
mother;”  that  they  wished  her  prosperity,  and  that  they  left  her  and  their 
native  land  with  “ much  sadness  of  heart  and  many  tears.”  They  declared 
that  they  went  to  establish  an  independent  church,  but  not  a separate  one. 

The  Arabella  arrived  at  Salem  in  June.  They  found  there  neither  a 
church  nor  town.  A rather  stately  house,  in  which  the  governor  lived,  and 
a few  hovels,  constituted  the  shelter  of  the  settlers,  among  cornfields. 
Death  had  been  busy,  during  the  previous  winter  and  spring,  with  the  older 
settlers,  and  many  of  the  survivors  were  weak  and  sick.  Provisions  were 
scarce.  Disease  attacked  the  new  comers,  and  before  the  close  of  autumn, 
of  a thousand  emigrants  who  had  arrived  that  year,  two  hundred  were  in 
their  graves.  The  charming  Arabella  J ohnson — the  “ queen  of  the  colony  ” — 


380 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  III. 


who  came  from  a home  of  luxury,  died  within  a month  after  her  arrival ; 
and  grief  for  her  loss  consigned  her  husband  to  the  grave  a few  weeks  after- 
ward. 

Winthrop  sought  a more  attractive  place  than  Salem  for  the  seating  of 
his  colony.  Endicott’s  people  had  built  some  huts  at  Charlestown,  whither 
some  of  Winthrop’s  people  went.  Others  seated  themselves  at  Dorchester, 
Roxbury,  Watertown,  and  Cambridge.  It  was  proposed  to  found  the  capital 
of  the  colony  at  Charlestown,  and  there  the  first  court  of  the  assistants  was 
held  late  in  August.  But  an  epidemic  disease,  caused,  it  was  supposed,  by 
unwholesome  water  at  Charlestown,  induced  the  governor  and  magistrates, 
and  others  of  the  settlers,  to  remove  to  the  peninsula  of  Shawmut,  the  site 
of  Boston,  where  they  found  an  abundance  of  pure  spring  water.  There 
they  built  cottages  and  founded  the  capital  of  New  England.  The  penin- 
sula was  composed  of  three  considerable  hills,  and  was  called  Tri-mountain 
for  some  time.  The  capital  was  named  Boston,  in  commemoration  of  the 
native  place  of  some  of  the  emigrants  from  Lincolnshire.  At  the  close  of 
1630,  a large  number  of  new  emigrants  had  arrived,  and  the  settlement  on 
Shawmut  was  greatly  increased.  During  the  season,  seventeen  ships  had 
brought  almost  fifteen  hundred  emigrants  from  England. 

From  the  beginning  the  people  were  jealous  of  the  power  of  the  magis- 
trates and  ministers.  They  well  knew  the  tendency  toward  tyranny  of  men 
exercising  unrestrained  control,  and  they  thought  it  wise  to  assert  popular 
rights — the  rights  of  the  people — at  the  outset.  At  a general  court  of  the 
magistrates  or  assistants,  in  May,  1631,  it  was  agreed  that  thenceforth  all  the 
officers  of  the  government  should  be  chosen  annually  by  the  freemen  of  the 
colony.  These  consisted  of  only  men  who  were  members  in  good  standing 
of  some  church.  This  was  an  attempt  to  establish  a sort  of  religious  aris- 
tocracy for  the  control  of  the  state,  for,  of  the  whole  population,  only  one 
hundred  and  eighteen  persons  were  qualified  to  be  freemen,  according  to  the 
prescription.  This  intimate  relation  between  church  and  state  gave  rise  to 
many  disorders,  and  it  was  dissolved  in  1665. 

There  was  another  change  in  1634,  when  a representative  government 
was  established,  the  second  in  America.  There  were  now  eight  distinct 
settlements  in  Massachusetts,  and  the  growth  of  the  colony  was  more  rapid 
and  sturdy  than  that  of  Plymouth.  Winthrop,  whom  the  people  re-elected, 
ruled  wisely.  Like  Bradford,  he  courted  the  friendship  of  the  surrounding 
Indians,  and  chiefs  and  sachems  dined  at  his  table.  There  might  have  been 
seen  a sagamore  from  the  Mohegans  on  the  distant  Hudson  River  to  tell 
him  of  the  beautiful  Connecticut  Valley,  and  invite  him  to  send  settlers 
there.  There,  also,  might  have  beerl  seen  the  son  of  the  aged  Canonicus ; 


Chap.  VI. 


CIVIL  WAR  BREWING  IN  ENGLAND. 


381 


his  nephew  Miantonomoh,  the  brilliant  young  chief  of  the  Narragansets, 
and  the  representatives  of  the  Nipmucs  and  Wampanoags  with  Massasoit, 
the  good  chief  of  the  latter  nation.  Winthrop  also  cultivated  friendly 
relations  with  the  neighboring  settlements  and  distant  colonies.  He  jour- 
neyed on  foot  from  Shawmut  to  Plymouth,  to  exchange  courtesies  with 
Governor  Bradford;  and  he  sent  messengers  to  New  Netherland  to  have  a 
friendly  talk  there  with  the  authorities  about  the  occupation  of  a part  of  the 
Connecticut  Valley.  His  policy  was  peace  and  good-fellowship.  A ship, 
trafficking  with  corn,  that  came  from  Virginia,  met  a friendly  greeting  when 
she  sailed  into  Boston  harbor. 

For  awhile  after  the  arrival  of  Winthrop  and  his  company,  the  flow  of 
emigration  to  Massachusetts  almost  ceased.  Men  wished  to  see  the  experi- 
ment there  fully  tried  before  venturing.  The  intolerance  of  the  authorities 
in  church  and  state,  in  Massachusetts,  was  another  cause  for  hesitation. 
The  narrow  views  of  civil  and  religious  freedom  entertained  by  those 
authorities  and  practically  enforced,  did  not  suit  the  more  liberal-minded  of 
the  English  Non-conformists,  who  were  disposed  to  emigrate.  There  were 
too  many  shades  of  opinion  among  them  to  expect  harmony  before  such  an 
inexorable  censor  as  they  would  meet  in  the  half-ecclesiastical  or  church 
government  of  Massachusetts.  But  political  and  religious  events  in  England 
soon  gave  an  amazing  impetus  to  emigration  to  America.  Laud,  the 
primate  or  head  of  the  church,  in  England,  who  hated  Puritans  intensely, 
was  then  carrying  forward  persecution  with  a high  hand.  He  was  an 
implacable  inquisitor,  and  sent  men  to  prison  without  mercy,  because  they 
did  not  conform  to  his  requirements  in  their  method  of  worshipping 
Almighty  God.  At  the  same  time  there  was  a violent  struggle  for  power 
between  the  monarch  and  the  people.  The  king  had,  in  effect,  abolished 
the  Parliament,  and  was  ruling  England  at  the  bidding  of  his  uncontrolled 
will.  Civil  war  was  evidently  brewing  in  the  hearts  and  minds  of  the  people, 
and  those  who  loved  quiet  and  foresaw  the  coming  storm  fled  to  America  to 
avoid  its  consequences.  During  the  year  1635,  full  three  thousand  new 
settlers  went  to  Massachusetts,  among  whom  were  men  of  wealth,  influence, 
and  distinction.  Among  these  were  the  fiery  Hugh  Peters,  an  eloquent 
Puritan  preacher,  and  Henry  Vane,  an  enthusiastic  young  man  twenty-five 
years  of  age,  who  took  a conspicuous  part  in  the  affairs  of  the  colony. 
Meanwhile  the  harsh  proceedings  of  Endicott  and  others  toward  those  who 
did  not  conform  to  their  rigid  discipline,  and  the  intemperate  zeal  which 
characterized  the  authorities  in  Massachusetts,  in  their  opposition  to  the 
church  and  crown,  aroused  the  jealousy  and  resentment  of  both.  These 
feelings  were  intensified  by  the  intimations  of  the  enemies  of  the  colonists. 


382 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  III. 


that  they  “ aimed  not  at  new  discipline,  but  sovereignty,”  and  action  was 
taken  to  bring  them  into  subjection.  Much  had  been  made  of  the  fact  that 
Endicott  had  caused  a part  of  the  red-cross  of  St.  George  to  be  cut  out  of 
the  English  flag  at  Salem,  and  that  many  of  the  citizens  refused  to  follow  it 
before  it  was  so  mutilated.  These  things  were  cited  as  evidence  of  dis- 
loyalty to  the  crown.  On  the  contrary,  it  was  loyalty  to  bigotry.  Endicott 
regarded  the  cross  in  the  flag  as  a “ relic  of  Anti-Christ,”  because  the  Pope 
had  given  it  to  the  King  of  England  as  an  ensign  of  victory.  The  whole 
aspect  of  the  act  was  theological,  not  political ; but  the  royalists  chose 
to  interpret  it  otherwise,  and  it  was  one  of  the  reasons  for  tyrannical 
action  toward  the  colony,  when  orders  were  issued  to  the  authorities 
of  Massachusetts  to  produce  their  charter  before  the  Privy  Council  in 
England.  This  was  followed,  in  the  spring  of  1634,  by  the  appointment  of 
an  arbitrary  special  commission  for  the  colonies,  with  Laud,  the  primate,  at 
their  head.  He  and  his  associates  received  full  power  over  the  American 
colonies  to  organize  new  governments  and  dictate  laws ; to  regulate  public 
worship,  and  to  inflict  punishments  and  revoke  charters. 

When  the  news  of  these  proceedings  reached  New  England,  with  a 
rumor  that  a governor-general  or  viceroy  was  on  his  way,  the  authorities  of 
Massachusetts  took  the  boldest  measures.  Fortifications  were  ordered,  and 
three  thousand  dollars — then  a large  sum  for  the  poor  colonists — were  raised 
to  pay  for  them  ; and  it  was  resolved  not  to  receive  a governor  appointed 
by  the  crown.  They  determined  to  resist  as  long  as  possible.  It  was  at 
that  juncture  that  the  great  emigration  just  spoken  of  took  place. 


CHAPTER  VII. 


THEOLOGICAL  DISPUTES — HENRY  VANE  MADE  GOVERNOR  OF  MASSACHUSETTS — MRS.  HUTCHINSON 
AND  HER  FATE — ENGLISH  POWER  RESPECTED  BY  THE  SAVAGES — THE  NEW  ENGLAND  CON- 
FEDERACY— FIRST  COINAGE  IN  AMERICA — THE  PURITAN  AND  HIS  WAYS— PURITAN  MAGIS- 
TRATES OUTWITTED — DEALINGS  WITH  A THIEF — APOLOGY  FOR  INTOLERANCE — PERSECUTION 
OF  FRIENDS  OR  QUAKERS — CHARLES  I.  BEHEADED— CROMWELL — MONARCHY  RESTORED — 
FATE  OF  THE  KING’S  JUDGES — GOFFE  AND  WHALLEY — MASSACHUSETTS  AND  CHARLES  II. 

WHEN  the  fiery  Hugh  Peters  and  the  gentler  Henry  Vane  arrived 
at  Boston  in  1635,  the  colony  was  somewhat  excited  by  theo- 
logical disputes.  The  new-comers  engaged  in  the  controversy, 
and  it  soon  took  the  form  of  a bitter  quarrel.  Peters  was  a rigid  Puritan 
preacher  just  from  a six  years  exile  in  Holland,  and  he  was  made  pastor  of 
the  church  vacated  by  Roger  Williams  when  he  was  banished,  whose 
doctrines  the  new  preacher  denounced,  and  whose  adherents  he  expelled 
from  the  congregation. 

Vane  was  only  twenty-three  years  of  age.  He  was  a son  of  one  of  the 
king’s  high  officers  of  state,  and  a young  man  of  purest  morals.  Forsaking 
the  preferments  which  awaited  him  at  court,  he  fled  to  New  England  to 
enjoy  the  freedom  of  simple  worship  among  those  whose  cause  he  had 
espoused.  In  after  years  Milton  praised  him  for  his  goodness,  and  Clarendon 
regarded  him  as  equal  to  Hampden  in  statesmanship. 

The  colonists  regarded  the  advent  of  Vane  as  a token  of  the  speedy 
emigration  to  Massachusetts  of  leading  men  of  the  realm.  They  received 
him  with  open  arms,  and  in  the  delirium  of  their  joy  they  seemed  to  forget 
their  veterans,  and  elected  him  governor  of  the  colony.  With  broad  and 
generous  views,  he  defended  the  tenets  of  Mr.  Williams  and  Mrs.  Hutchinson 
in  the  controversy — the  leading  points  of  which  have  been  defined  in  the 
Seventh  Chapter  of  the  Second  Book.  This  gave  intensity  to  the  partisan 
feeling,  both  in  politics  and  theology,  and  a strong  opposition  to  Vane  was 
organized.  After  a tempestuous  year  Vane  was  defeated  at  the  next  annual 
election,  when  he  returned  to  England. 

Soon  after  Vane’s  departure  Mrs.  Hutchinson  was  banished,  and  she 
settled  in  Rhode  Island.  There  she  became  a widow.  Dreading  the  perse- 


384 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  III. 


cutions  of  bigots  which  menaced  her,  she  left  New  England  and  took  up  her 
abode  within  the  domain  of  New  Netherland,  among  the  sons  of  the  forest. 
Her  cabin  was  near  the  present  village  of  New  Rochelle,  in  Westchester 
county,  and  with  her  dwelt  all  her  family,  in  peace,  until  the  wickedness  of 
Governor  Kieft  excited  the  wrath  of  the  Indians.  With  blind  fury  they 
swept  through  the  forest  destroying  every  white  settler  and  settlement. 
Mrs.  Hutchinson  did  not  escape.  She  and  all  her  family,  excepting  a grand- 
daughter, fair  and  curly-haired, 
eight  years  of  age,  were  mur- 
dered. Her  house  and  barns 
were  burned ; her  cattle  were 
butchered,  and  her  grandchild 
was  carried  away  captive.  The 
young  warrior  who  spared  her 
life  took  her  tenderly  in  his  arms 
and  soothed  her  with  caresses, 
while  an  attendant  bore  upon  a 
pole  the  scalps  of  some  of  her 
kinsfolk.  When,  four  years 
afterward,  little  Anna  Collins 
was  delivered  to  the  Dutch  gov- 
ernor at  New  Amsterdam  to  be 
sent  to  her  friends  at  Boston  in 
accordance  with  the  terms  of  a 
treaty,  she  had  forgotten  her 
own  language  and  was  unwilling 
to  leave  her  Indian  friends. 

The  good  results  of  the  war 
with  the  Pequods  promised 
future  security  to  the  New  Eng- 
land colonists  against  dangers 

THE  LITTLE  CAPTIVE.  * ^ r 1 

from  the  wrath  ot  the  savages. 
The  power  of  the  English  mani- 
fested in  that  war  made  the  Indians  peacefully  inclined  for  a whole  genera- 
tion of  time.  Emigration,  stimulated  by  persecution,  began  to  flow  into 
New  England  in  a copious  stream.  The  exodus  of  Puritans  from  British 
shores,  and  the  amazing  development  of  a republican  state  in  America,  soon 
excited  the  jealousy  and  the  fears  of  the  church  and  the  government.  They 
put  forth  their  strength  to  stay  the  tide,  as  we  have  observed,  in  vain. 
Other  causes  effected  what  royal  decrees  and  armed  men  could  not  do. 


Chap.  VII. 


THE  NEW  ENGLAND  CONFEDERACY. 


385 


Troubles  in  England  which  threatened  the  overthrow  of  the  monarchy  and 
the  hierarchy  or  church  establishment  withdrew  the  attention  of  both  from 
the  distant  colonies ; and  when  the  civil  war  that  ensued  promised  better 
times  for  the  lovers  of  freedom  at  home,  emigration  to  America  almost 
ceased. 

Meanwhile  the  ties  of  interest  and  common  sympathy  united  the 
struggling  colonists  in  New  England.  They  were  natives  of  the  same 
country,  and  were  the  social  and  political  products  of  persecution — alike 
exposed  to  the  weapons  of  hostile  Indians  and  the  greed  for  territory  and 
power  of  the  French  and  Dutch  on  their  eastern  and  western  borders. 
They  were  equally  menaced  with  punishment  by  the  parent  government  for 
non-conformity  in  matters  of  state  and  religion.  They  were,  in  fact,  one 
people,  bound  by  interwoven  interests.  Therefore  when  the  civil  war  in 
Old  England  broke  out  in  1641,  and  the  New  England  colonists,  numbering 
more  than  twenty  thousand,  with  fifty  villages,  almost  forty  churches,  and 
their  commerce  expanding  and  manufactures  of  cotton  from  Barbadoes 
making  them  independent  of  the  mother  country  so  far,  the  aspect  of  the 
present  and  future  made  them  seriously  contemplate  the  establishment  of  a 
new  nation.  No  tie  of  gratitude  exacted  their  allegiance  to  the  British 
government.  On  the  contrary,  their  happiness  in  freedom  was  the  result  of 
neglect  and  oppression,  rather  than  of  care  and  protection.  In  1643,  the 
British  Parliament  acknowledged  that  “the  plantations  in  New  England 
had,  by  the  blessing  of  the  Almighty,  had  good  and  prosperous  success 
without  any  public  charge  to  the  parent  state.” 

A confederation  of  New  England  colonies  for  mutual  defence  had  been 
proposed  by  Connecticut  immediately  after  the  war  with  the  Pequods. 
When  the  crown  threatened  to  deprive  Massachusetts  of  her  charter,  in 
1638,  the  other  colonies  counselled  resistance,  and  the  people  of  the  Bay 
threatened  secession  from  the  British  realm.  Now,  relieved  of  the  pressure 
of  royal  rule  under  royal  displeasure,  the  inhabitants  of  New  England 
resolved  to  unite  in  a political  league.  In  May,  1643,  deputies  from  the 
colonies  of  Plymouth,  Connecticut  and  New  Haven  met  those  of  Massa- 
chusetts in  Boston.  They  very  soon  agreed  upon  twelve  articles  of  Con- 
federation, and  constituted  a confederacy  under  the  title  of  “The  United 
Colonies  of  New  England.”  That  written  agreement  was  signed  on  the 
20th  of  August  following.  Rhode  Island  and  the  settlements  in  New 
Hampshire  and  Maine  asked  to  be  admitted  to  the  Union,  but  were  denied, 
chiefly,  as  Winthrop  said,  “ because  they  ran  a different  course  from  us, 
both  in  their  ministry  and  civil  administration.”  They  would  not  bend  to 
the  dictates  of  Massachusetts  in  matters  which  concerned  the  conscience. 


386 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  III. 


Whereupon,  as  we  have  observed,  Rhode  Island,  which  refused  required 
allegiance  to  Plymouth,  took  immediate  and  successful  steps  to  procure  an 
independent  charter.  See  Chapter  VII,  Book  II. 

The  New  England  Confederacy — the  harbinger  of  the  United  States  of 
America — was  simply  a league  of  independent  provinces,  as  were  our  thir- 
teen States  under  the  “ Articles  of  Confederation,”  as  we  shall  observe 
hereafter,  each  jealously  guarding  its  own  privileges  and  rights  against  any 
encroachments  of  the  “ general  government.”  That  central  body  was  really 
no  government  at  all.  It  was  composed  of  a Board  of  Commissioners  con- 
sisting of  two  church  members  from  each  colony,  who  were  to  meet  annually  or 
oftener  if  required.  Their  duty  was  to  consider  circumstances  and  recom- 
mend measures  for  the  general  good.  They  had  no  executive  nor  independ- 
ent legislative  powers,  their  recommendations  becoming  laws  only  after  the 
separate  colonies  had  acted  upon  and  approved  them.  The  doctrine  of 
State  supremacy  was  controlling. 

That  famous  league,  of  which  Massachusetts  assumed  the  control  because 
of  its  greater  population  and  its  being  a “ perfect  republic,”  remained  in 
existence  more  than  forty  years,  during  which  period  the  government  of 
England  was  changed  three  times.  Unlike  the  Virginians,  the  New  Eng- 
landers sympathized  with  the  English  republicans,  and  found  in  Oliver  Crom- 
well, the  ruler  of  England  next  to  the  beheaded  Charles  the  First,  a sincere 
friend  and  protector.  The  colony  of  Massachusetts,  in  particular,  prospered. 
A profitable  commerce  between  that  colony  and  the  West  India  Islands  was 
created.  That  trade  brought  bullion,  or  uncoined  gold  and  silver,  into  the 
colony,  which  led,  in  1652,  to  the  exercise  of  an  act  of  sovereignty  on  the 
part  of  the  authorities  of  Massachusetts  by  the  establishment  of  a mint. 
It  was  authorized  by  the  General  Assembly,  in  1651,  and  the  following  year 
silver  coins  of  the  denominations  of  three-pence,  six-pence,  and  twelve- 
pence,  or  shilling,  were  struck.  This  was  the  first  coinage  within  the  ter- 
ritory of  the  United  States. 

The  Puritan  of  Massachusetts,  at  this  time,  was  the  straitest  of  his 
sect — an  unflinching  egotist  who  regarded  himself  as  eminently  his  “brother’s 
keeper,”  whose  constant  business  was  to  save  his  fellow-men  from  sin  and 
error;  sitting  in  judgment  upon  their  belief  and  actions  with  the  authority 
of  a God-chosen  high-priest.  His  laws,  found  on  the  statute-books  of  the 
colony  or  divulged  in  the  records  of  court  proceedings,  exhibit  the  salient 
points  in  his  stern  and  inflexible  character  as  a self-constituted  censor,  and  a 
conservator  of  the  moral  and  spiritual  destiny  of  his  fellow-mortals.  He 
imposed  a fine  upon  every  woman  who  should  cut  her  hair  like  that  of  a 
man.  He  forbade  all  gaming  for  amusement  or  gain,  and  would  not  allow 


Chap.  VII. 


THE  NEW  ENGLAND  PURITANS. 


387 

cards  or  dice  to  be  introduced  into  the  colony.  He  fined  families  whose 
young  women  did  not  spin  as  much  flax  or  wool  daily  as  the  selectmen  had 
required  of  them.  He  would  not  allow  a Jesuit  or  Roman  Catholic  priest 
to  live  in  the  colony.  He  forbade  all  persons  to  run  or  even  walk  “ except 
reverently  to  and  from  church  ” on  Sunday ; and  he  doomed  a burglar, 
because  he  committed  his  crime  on  that  sacred  day,  to  have  one  of  his  ears 
cut  off.  He  commanded  John  Wedgewood  to  be  put  in  the  stocks  for  being 
in  the  company  of  drunkards ; Thomas  Petit,  for  “ suspicion  of  slander. 


PURITAN  MORAUTV  ENFORCED. 


idleness  and  stubbornness,”  he  caused  to  be  “ severely  whipped  Captain 
Lovell  he  admonished  to  “take  heed  of  light  carriage;”  Josias  Plaistowe, 
for  stealing  four  baskets  of  corn  from  the  Indians,  was  ordered  by  him  to 
return  to  them  eight  baskets,  to  be  fined  five  pounds,  and  thereafter  to 
“be  called  by  the  name  of  Josias,  and  not  Mr.  Plaistowe,  as  formerly.  He 
directed  his  grand  jurors  to  admonish  those  who  wore  apparel  too  costly  for 
their  income,  and  if  they  did  not  heed  the  warning  to  fine  them ; and  in 


388 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  III. 


1646,  he  placed  on  the  statute-book  of  Massachusetts  a law  which  imposed 
the  penalty  of  flogging  for  kissing  a woman  in  the  street,  even  in  the  way 
of  honest  salute. 

Almost  a hundred  years  after  that  law  was  passed,  its  penalty  was 
inflicted  upon  the  commander  of  a British  man-of-war.  She  arrived  at 
Boston  after  a long  cruise.  As  her  commander  was  going  toward  his  home 
in  that  city,  he  met  his  wife  in  the  street  hastening  to  greet  him,  when  he 
gave  her  an  affectionate  kiss.  A stern  old  magistrate  in  a cocked-hat  and 
powdered  hair  in  a queue,  who  was  “ learned  in  the  law,”  seeing  the  act, 
caused  his  immediate  arrest.  The  next  morning,  after  due  trial,  the  captain 
was  convicted  and  the  punishment  of  flogging  was  administered  in  a very 
mild  way,  but  in  a public  place,  causing  much  merriment.  When  the  victim 
was  about  to  sail  on  another  cruise,  he  invited  that  magistrate  and  others 
whom,  he  understood,  had  approved  of  his  punishment,  to  a complimentary 
dinner  on  board  of  his  vessel,  as  a token  of  his  forgiveness  and  submission. 
They  accepted  it,  and  when  they  were  all  merry  with  good  cheer,  and  were 
on  deck  ready  to  depart,  he  ordered  his  boatswain  and  mate  to  give  the 
magistrates  a sound  flogging.  Each  officer  was  armed  with  a knotted 
cat-o ’-nine-tails,  and  they  drove  the  astonished  guests  pell-mell  over  the  side 
of  the  vessel  into  the  boat  waiting  to  receive  them.  The  captain  sailed 
away,  and  the  law  was  soon  afterward  repealed.  Governor  Winthrop  tem- 
pered these  laws  with  merciful  mildness  in  their  execution.  On  one  occasion 
it  was  reported  to  him  that  a man  had  been  stealing  from  his  store  of 
winter’s  firewood,  and  he  was  urged  to  punish  him.  “ I will  soon  put  a stop 
to  that  bad  practice,”  said  the  governor  sternly.  He  sent  for  the  offender. 
“You  have  a large  family,”  he  said  to  the  offending  culprit,  “and  I have  a 
large  magazine  of  wood ; come  as  often  as  you  please,  and  take  as  much  of 
it  as  you  need  to  make  your  dwelling  comfortable.”  Then  turning  to  his 
accusers,  he  said : “ Now  I defy  him  to  steal  any  more  of  my  firewood.” 

The  bigotry  and  austerity  of  the  Puritans  in  Massachusetts  were  vehe- 
mently condemned  at  the  time  of  their  iron  rule  in  New  England,  and  have 
been  ever  since.  But  there  are  peculiar  considerations  in  their  case,  which 
the  eye  of  justice  cannot  overlook.  Their  theology  and  their  ideas  of  church 
government  were  founded  upon  the  deepest  heart-convictions  of  a people 
not  broadly  educated.  They  had  encountered  and  subdued  a savage  wilder- 
ness for  the  purpose  of  planting  therein  a church  and  a commonwealth 
fashioned  in  all  their  parts  after  a narrow  but  cherished  pattern.  They  felt 
that  the  domain  which  they  had  conquered  with  so  much  peril  and  toil  was 
their  own,  and  that  they  had  as  good  a right  to  regulate  its  internal  affairs 
according  to  their  own  notions,  and  exclude  all  obnoxious  persons,  as  had  a 


Chap.  VII. 


FANATICAL  FRIENDS  OR  QUAKERS. 


389 


householder  the  affairs  of  his  family  and  4he  avoidance  of  an  unwelcome 
visitor.  They  had  boldly  proclaimed  the  right  to  the  exercise  of  private 
judgment  in  matters  of  conscience,  and  so  they  tacitly  invited  the  perse- 
cuted of  all  lands  to  come  to  them.  Therefore,  “ unsettled  persons,”  liber- 
tines in  unrestrained  opinions,  came  to  Massachusetts  from  abroad  to 
disseminate  their  peculiar  views.  In  that  dissemination  the  Puritans  saw 
clear  prophecies  of  a disorganization  of  their  church.  They  took  the  alarm 
early,  and  with  a mistaken  policy  they  resisted  such  encroachments  upon 
their  domain  and  into  their  society  with  fiery  penal  laws  implacably  executed. 
But  it  was  only  in  respect  to  religion  that  the  Puritan  laws  were  specially 
harsh  as  compared  with  the  general  jurisprudence  or  science  of  law  of  that 
day.  “ God  forbid,”  said  Governor  Dudley  in  his  old  age,  “ our  love  for  the 
truth  should  be  grown  so  cold  that  we  should  tolerate  errors — I die  no 
libertine.”  “ Better  tolerate  hypocrites  and  tares  than  thorns  and  briers,” 
exclaimed  that  “ famous  man  of  God,”  as  Norton  called  Parson  John  Cotton. 
“ To  say  that  men  ought  to  have  liberty  of  conscience  is  impious  ignorance,” 
said  Parson  Ward  of  Ipswich,  author  of  “The  Simple  Cobbler  of  Agawam.” 
“ Religion  admits  of  no  eccentric  notions,”  said  Parson  Norton,  the  colleague 
of  Ward,  biographer  of  Cotton,  and  persecutor  of  the  Friends  or  Quakers. 

Friends  or  Quakers.  The  peculiarities  of  this  sect,  we  have  considered 
in  Chapter  Ninth  of  the  Second  Book.  Among  the  earlier  disciples  of 
George  Fox  were  many  enthusiasts  whose  zeal  led  their  judgment.  They 
were  absolute  fanatics,  and  sometimes  became  lunatics  in  their  religious 
views  and  actions,  and  were  utterly  unlike  the  sober,  mild-mannered  mem- 
bers of  that  society  to-day.  They  ran  into  the  wildest  extravagancies  in  the 
exercise  of  the  liberty  of  speech ; openly  reviling  magistrates  and  ministers 
with  intemperate  language ; overriding  the  rights  of  all  others  in  maintain- 
ing their  own,  and  scorning  all  respect  for  human  laws.  They  made  the 
most  exalted  pretensions  to  the  exclusive  possession  of  the  gifts  of  the  Holy 
Spirit  and  the  power  of  persuasion  with  which  they  were  endowed.  Some, 
in  the  pride  of  their  egotism,  went  to  Rome  to  convert  the  Pope ; others 
went  to  the  East  to  convince  the  Grand  Turk  and  his  people  of  their  errors; 
and  some  came  to  America  to  proselyte  the  Puritans  in  New  England,  the 
Roman  Catholics  in  Maryland,  and  the  Cavaliers  and  Churchmen  in  Virginia. 
Some  of  them  behaved  so  wildly  and  disorderly  in  Boston  that  they  suffered 
intensely  from  the  indignation  of  the  magistrates  and  clergy  there  ; and  they 
so  disgusted  the  tolerant  Roger  Williams,  that  he  tried  to  root  them  out  of 
Rhode  Island. 

The  first  of  the  sect  who  appeared  conspicuous  in  New  England  were 
Mary  Fisher  and  Anna  Austin,  who  arrived  at  Boston  in  the  summer  of 


390 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  HI. 


1656,  when  John  Endicott  was  governor.  There  was  then  no  special  law 
against  them,  but  under  a general  act  against  heretics,  they  were  arrested  ; 
their  persons  were  examined  to  find  marks  of  witchcraft,  with  which  they 
were  suspected  ; their  trunks  were  searched,  and  their  books  were  burned 
publicly  by  the  common  hangman.  These  innocent  and  well-behaved 
women  were  so  treated  because  of  the  stories  of  the  disorderly  acts  of  some 
of  the  sect  in  England  who  had  come  over  the  sea.  After  keeping  them 
in  prison  several  weeks,  the  authorities  of  Massachusetts  sent  them  back  to 


FRIENDS  OR  QUAKERS  GOING  TO  EXECUTION. 


England.  Mary  Fisher  afterward  visited  the  Sultan  of  Turkey,  passing 
everywhere  unharmed  because  his  people  reverenced  a crazy  person,  for  such 
they  took  her  to  be. 

This  harsh  treatment  of  the  first  comers  fired  the  zeal  of  the  more 
enthusiastic  of  the  sect  in  England.  They  sought  martyrdom  as  an  honor. 
They  flocked  to  New  England  and  fearfully  vexed  the  souls  of  the  Puritan 
magistrates  and  ministers.  One  woman  came  all  the  way  from  London  to 
warn  the  authorities  against  persecutions.  Others  came  for  the  purpose  of 
reviling  and  denouncing — vehemently  scolding — the  powers  in  church  and 
state.  They  would  rail  at  magistrates  and  ministers  from  windows,  as  these 


Chap.  VII. 


EXECUTION  OF  FRIENDS  OR  QUAKERS. 


391 


functionaries  passed  by.  They  mocked  the  institutions  of  the  country ; and 
some  fanatical  young  women  appeared  without  clothing 'in  the  churches  and 
in  the  streets,  as  emblems  “ of  the  unclothed  souls  of  the  people,”  while 
others,  with  loud  voices,  proclaimed  that  the  wrath  of  the  Almighty  was 
about  to  fall  like  destructive  lightning  upon  Boston  and  Salem.  Horrified 
by  their  blasphemies  and  indecencies,  the  authorities  of  Massachusetts 
passed  some  very  cruel  laws.  At  first  they  forbade  all  persons  “ harboring 
Quakers,”  imposing  severe  penalties  for  each  offence.  Then  they  imposed 
mild  punishments  upon  the  Friends  themselves.  These  statutes  w'ere 
ineffectual;  and  finally,  driven  by  resentment  and  mistaken  judgment,  they 
passed  laws  which  authorized  the  cropping  of  the  ears,  boring  of  the  tongues 
with  hot  irons,  and  hanging  on  a gibbet,  of  offending  Quakers.  Yet  these 
terrible  laws  did  not  keep  them  away.  They  were  fined,  imprisoned, 
whipped  and  hanged  during  the  administration  of  the  rigid  Endicott,  who 
was  implacable.  On  a bright  October  day  in  1659,  two  young  men  named 
William  Robinson  and  Marmaduke  Stevenson,  with  Mary  Dyer,  wife  of  the 
secretary  of  state  of  Rhode  Island,  were  led  from  the  Boston  jail,  with 
ropes  around  their  necks,  and  guarded  by  soldiers,  to  be  hanged  on  Boston 
Common.  Mary  walked  between  her  companions  hand  in  hand  to  the 
gallows,  where,  in  the  presence  of  Governor  Endicott,  the  two  young  men 
were  executed.  Mary  was  unmoved  by  the  spectacle.  She  was  given  into 
the  care  of  her  son  who  came  from  Rhode  Island  to  plead  for  her  life,  and 
went  away  with  him.  But  she  returned  the  next  spring,  defied  the  laws,  and 
was  executed  on  Boston  Common. 

The  severity  of  these  laws  caused  a revulsion  in  public  sentiment.  The 
Friends  stoutly  maintained  their  course  with  decency,  and  were  regarded  by 
the  more  thoughtful  as  real  martyrs  for  conscience  sake.  The  people,  at 
length,  demanded  a repeal  of  the  bloody  enactments,  and  by  that  repeal,  in 
1661,  the  Friends  achieved  a triumph.  The  fanaticism  of  both  parties  sub- 
sided. A more  Christian  spirit  prevailed ; and  the  attention  of  the  more 
sober-minded  Friends  was  turned  to  the  task  of  converting  the  Indians. 
They  nobly  assisted  the  Apostle  Eliot  and  others  in  propagating  the  gospel 
among  the  pagans  of  the  forests  for  whom  that  Apostle  had  labored 
for  years.  He  had  established  a Christian  church  among  them  at  Natic,  and 
at  the  time  of  the  repeal  of  the  cruel  laws,  there  were  no  less  than  ten 
villages  of  converted  Indians  in  Massachusetts. 

The  reign  of  republicanism  in  England,  under  Oliver  Cromwell  and  his 
son,  was  short.  King  Charles  the  First,  after  contending  with  the  people  for 
the  royal  prerogative  and  the  throne  for  several  years,  was  beheaded  on  a 
cold  winter’s  morning  in  January,  1649,  in  front  of  his  own  palace  of  White- 
26 


392 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Hook  III. 


hall.  Royalty  was  then  abolished.  Late  in  May,  i66o,  the  i^on  of  King 
Charles,  who  had  been  proclaimed  monarch  of  England  under  the  title  of 
Charles  the  Second,  rode  into  London  on  horseback  between  his  brothers 
the  Dukes  of  York  and  Gloucester,  and  took  up  his  abode  in  the  palace  of 
Whitehall,  while  flags  waved,  bells  rang,  cannon  roared,  trumpets  brayed, 
.shouts  rent  the  air  and  fountains  poured  out  costly  liba'tions  of  wine  as 
tokens  of  the  public  joy.  After  a struggle  for  about  twenty  years  between 
royalists  and  republicans,  the  monarchy  was  restored,  and  the  English  people 
again  became  subjects  of  the  head  of  the  Scottish  house  of  Stuart. 


ENTRANCE  OF  CHARLES  THE  SECOND  INTO  LONDON. 


The  members  of  the  House  of  Commons  had  constituted  a High  Court 
of  Justice  for  the  trial  of  Charles  the  First,  and  many  of  them  signed  his 
death-warrant.  These  were  hunted  by  the  royal  vengeance.  Some  perished 
on  the  scaffold.  Among  these  were  Hugh  Peters  and  Henry  Vane,  who  had 
figured  conspicuously  in  New  England  more  than  twenty  years  before. 
Many  fled  and  so  escaped  the  fatal  block.  Among  these  were  Edward 
Whalley  and  William  Goffe,  who  went  to  New  England  and  gave  the  first 
news  of  the  restoration  of  monarchy.  The  former  was  a cousin  of  Crom- 
well and  of  Hampden,  and  a distinguished  cavalry  officer.  He  had  been 
intrusted  with  the  custody  of  the  royal  prisoner,  and  was  one  of  the  signers 
of  his  death-warrant.  Cromwell  appointed  him  one  of  the  major-generals 
who  assisted  in  the  government  of  the  commonwealth,  and  was  one  of  his 
most  active  lieutenants.  Goffe,  a son  of  a Puritan  clergyman,  was  Whalley’s 


Chap.  VII. 


GENERALS  WHALLEY  AND  GOFFE. 


393 


son-in-law,  a colonel  of  infantry  and  member  of  the  High  Court  who  signed 
the  death-warrant  of  the  king.  He,  also,  was  one  of  Cromwell’s  ten  major- 
generals. 

Orders  speedily  followed  the  fugitives  to  New  England  for  their  arrest, 
and  officers  came  from  Old  England  for  the  same  purpose.  The  “ regicides,” 
or  king-killers,  as  they  were  called,  were,  after  awhile,  closely  hunted,  but 
the  authorities  and  people  of  New  England  effectually  concealed  them  from 
their  enemies  for  years.  When  danger  lowered,  they  fled  from  Boston  to 
New  Haven,  and  for  a long  time  occupied  a cave  not  far  from  that  place. 
Finally  they  made  their  abode  in  the  remote  town  of  Hadley,  where  they 
were  joined  by  Colonel  Dixwell,  another  “regicide,”  who  finally  settled  in 
New  Haven.  In  Hadley,  Whalley  died.  Goffe  survived  him  until  after 
King  Phillip’s  war,  which  we  shall  notice  presently ; but  from  the  time  when 
they  took  up  their  abode  there,  in  disguise,  they  disappeared  from  public 
view.  During  that  period,  so  terrible  to  New  England  settlers,  Hadley  was 
surrounded  by  hostile  Indians.  The  people  were  in  the  meeting-house 
observing  a fast  day.  They  were  armed,  as  usual,  and  sallied  out  to  drive 
off  the  savages.  At  that  moment  a tall,  venerable  personage,  with  a white, 
flowing  beard,  clad  in  a white  robe  and  carrying  a glittering  sword,  suddenly 
appeared  among  the  people,  took  the  lead  of  the  armed  men,  caused  them 
to  observe  strict  military  discipline,  and  led  them  to  victory.  The  people 
believed  the  stranger  (who  as  suddenly  disappeared)  to  be  an  angel  sent  by 
the  Lord  for  their  deliverance.  The  “ angel  ” was  General  Goffe,  who  was 
stout  in  body  and  valiant  in  spirit.  It  is  related  that  soon  after  his  arrival 
in  Boston,  a fencing-master  erected  a stage  on  the  Common,  on  which  he 
walked  several  days,  defying  any  man  to  fight  him  with  swords.  Goffe 
accepted  the  challenge.  He  wrapped  a huge  cheese  in  a linen  cloth  as  a 
shield,  and  arming  himself  with  a mop  filled  with  muddy  water  from  the 
gutter,  he  appeared  on  the  platform.  The  fencing-master  made  a thrust  at 
him,  which  Goffe  received  in  the  cheese  in  which  he  held  the  sword  until  he 
had  smeared  his  antagonist  with  mud.  The  enraged  fencing-master  caught 
up  a broad-sword,  when  Goffe  exclaimed : “ Stop,  sir ; hitherto,  you  see,  I 
have  only  played  with  you,  and  not  attempted  to  harm  you  ; but  if  you 
come  at  me  now  with  the  broad-sword,  know  that  I will  certainly  take  your 
life.”  The  alarmed  fencing-master  cried  out,  as  he  dropped  his  sword, 
“Who  can  you  be?  You  must  be  either  Goffe,  or  Whalley,  or  the  Devil, 
for  there  were  no  other  men  in  England  who  could  beat  me.” 

The  New  England  colonies,  and  especially  that  of  Massachusetts, 
expected  very  little  favor  from  the  new  monarch,  for  their  republicanism 
was  decided  and  conspicuous.  In  the  course  of  a few  months  after  the 


394 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Hook  III. 


restoration,  the  General  Court  of  Massachusetts  sent  addresses  to  the  King 
and  Parliament,  chiefly  because  enemies  of  New  England  evidently  pos- 
sessed the  confidence  of  the  monarch  and  his  ministers.  In  tho^e  addresses, 
general  loyalty  was  expressed,  and  they  prayed  for  a “ continuance  of  civil 
and  religious  liberties  ” which  they  had  long  enjoyed,  and  promised  for  the 
crown,  in  return  for  its  protection  of  their  freedom,  the  “ blessings  of  a 
people  whose  trust  is  in  God.” 

The  king  returned  a gracious  answer  in  the  form  of  general  expressions 
of  good-will,  but  his  smiles  were  not  propitious.  He  resolved  not  to  show 


GOFFE  AND  THE  FENCING-MASTER. 


these  distant  political  enemies  of  his  father  any  favors.  The  stringent  pro- 
visions of  the  navigation  laws  and  commercial  restrictions  from  which  Crom- 
well had  exempted  the  New  Englanders  were  now  renewed  and  rigorously 
enforced.  Expecting  collisions  with  the  Crown,  the  latter,  in  Massachusetts, 
issued  a declaration  of  natural  and  chartered  rights,  in  which  they  claimed 
the  liberty  to  choose  their  own  executive  officers  and  representatives ; to 


Chap.  VII. 


KING  PHILIP’S  WAR. 


395 


admit  freemen  on  their  own  prescribed  terms ; to  appoint  all  officers  and 
define  their  powers  and  duties ; to  exercise,  by  annually  elected  magistrates 
and  deputies,  any  function  of  human  government ; to  defend  themselves  by 
force  of  arrrts,  if  necessary,  against  every  aggression,  and  to  reject,  as  an 
infringement  of  their  right,  “ any  parliamentary  or  royal  imposition  preju- 
dicial to  the  country  and  contrary  to  any  just  act  of  colonial  legislation.” 

Massachusetts  now  sent  agents  to  London  to  persuade  the  king  of  their 
loyalty,  at  the  same  time  to  secure  their  independence  in  local  affairs,  as  a 
self-governing  people.  It  was  a difficult  task,  but  John  Newton  and  Simon 
Bradstreet  successfully  performed  it.  In  the  autumn  of  1662,  the  king  con- 
firmed the  Massachusetts  charter,  and  granted  a conditional  amnesty  of 
general  pardon  for  all  past  offences  during  the  late  civil  war ; at  the  same 
time  the  king  asserted  his  right  to  interfere  with  the  domestic  concerns  of 
the  colony. 

The  people  of  Massachusetts  did  not  concede  this  royal  right,  and  in  1664, 
commissioners  w£re  sent  over,  in  a royal  fleet,  destined  to  take  possession  of 
New  Netherland  (see  page  350),  commanded  by  Colonel  Nicolls,  one  of  the 
commissioners,  to  “ settle  the  peace  and  security  of  the  country  on  a solid  foun- 
dation ” — in  other  words,  to  rule  New  England  as  deputies  of  the  monarch. 
The  people  of  Massachusetts  were  greatly  irritated  by  this  measure,  and 
spoke  out  freely.  False  stories  were  carried  to  the  ears  of  the  king  respect- 
ing the  rebellion  of  the  colonies,  and  for  awhile  there  was  a general  belief  in 
London  that  Whalley  and  Goffe  were  at  the  head  of  a New  England  army, 
and  that  the  New  England  Confederacy  had  been  formed  for  the  express 
purpose  of  casting  ofT  all  dependence  on  the  mother  country  and  establish- 
ing a republic  in  America.  At  the  same  time  the  colonists  regarded  the 
commissioners  as  royal  instruments  of  oppression  who  would  destroy  their 
liberties.  Massachusetts  boldly  protested  against  the  exercise  of  their 
authority  within  its  domain.  So  did  the  other  New  England  colonies 
excepting  Rhode  Island.  The  acts  and  orders  of  the  commissioners  were 
generally  disregarded,  and  after  producing  much  ill-feeling  and  stimulating  a 
democratic  spirit  throughout  New  England,  they  departed  in  1666,  leaving 
the  colonies  triumphant.  Massachusetts  ever  afterwards  held  a front  rank 
in  the  sturdy  battle  for  independence  which  was  waged  for  more  than  a 
hundred  years.  Yet  she  had  a fierce  struggle,  at  times,  with  royalty  abroad, 
royal  agents  in  her  bosom,  and  pale  and  dusky  enemies  on  her  borders.  At 
about  the  time  when  she  triumphed  over  the  efforts  of  the  Crown  to  enslave 
her,  she  was  involved  in  a most  disastrous  war  with  Metacomet,  or  King 
Philip,  a son  of  the  then  dead  Massasoit.  That  contest  is  known  in  our 
history  as  King  Philip’s  War. 


CHAPTER  VIII. 


KING  PHILIP — HIS  PATRIOTISM — ANGER  OF  HIS  PEOPLE — HE  DECLARES  WAR — TERRIBLE  EVENTS 
OF  THAT  WAR — DEATH  OF  PHILIP  AND  FATE  OF  HIS  SON— DEATH  OF  CHARLES  II  AND 
ACCESSION  OF  JAMES  II — ANDROS  MADE  GOVERNOR-GENERAL — REVOLUTION  IN  ENGLAND — 
ANDROS  DRIVEN  FROM  BOSTON — FRENCH  JESUITS  IN  AMERICA — THE  FRENCH  AND  INDIANS — 
A CONGRESS  OF  DELEGATES  IN  NEW  YORK — CANADA  INVADED — THE  ENGLISH  REPULSED — 
NEW  CHARTER  FOR  MASSACHUSETTS. 

MASSASOIT,  as  we  have  observed,  kept  his  treaty  with  the  English 
inviolate  so  long  as  he  lived.  He  died  in  i66i,  at  the  age  of 
about  eighty  years,  leaving  two  sons  whom  the  English  called, 
respectively,  Alexander  and  Philip.  The  former  did  not  long  survive  his 
father,  when  Philip  became  chief  sachem  and  warrior  of  the  Wampanoags, 
with  his  royal  residence  on  Mount  Hope,  not  far  from  Bristol,  Rhode  Island. 
He  was  called  King  Philip.  He  resumed  the  covenants  with  the  English 
made  by  his  father,  and  observed  them  faithfully  for  a dozen  years. 

It  had  become  painfully  evident  to  Massasoit  before  his  death  that  the 
spreading  colonies  would  soon  deprive  his  people  of  their  land  and  nation- 
^ity,  and  that  the  Indians  would  become  vassals  of  the  pale  race.  The 
more  warlike  Philip  pondered  these  possibilities  with  deep  bitterness  of 
feeling,  until  he  resolved  to  strike  an  exterminating  blow  against  the  English 
in  defence  of  his  country  and  his  race.  His  resolution  was  natural  and 
patriotic.  His  unaided  warriors  would  be  inadequate  to  the  work ; so,  in 
the  primeval  forest  at  Mount  Hope,  surrounded  by  seven  hundred  fighting 
men,  he  planned  a confederacy  of  the  New  England  tribes,  which  might 
have  numbered  about  twenty-five  thousand  souls.  It  was  a difficult  task, 
the  power  of  so  many  being  overshadowed  by  that  of  the  English,  weaken- 
ing and  dividing  them.  Before  any  actual  conspiracy  was  effected,  Philip 
found  himself  compelled  to  declare  war  and  lift  the  hatchet. 

At  that  time  there  were  many  Christian  converts  among  the  Indians,  who 
were  firmly  attached  to  the  English.  The  Wampanoags  had  always  dis- 
couraged the  spread  of  Christianity  among  themselves,  but  there  were  many 
“praying  Indians”  there.  One  of  these — John  Sassamon,  who  had  been 
educated  at  Cambridge,  where  John  Harvard  had  established  a college — was 


Chap.  VIII. 


CAUSES  OF  KING  PHILIP’S  WAR. 


397 


a sort  of  secretary  to  Philip.  Becoming  acquainted  with  the  plans  of  the 
sachem,  he  revealed  them  to  the  authorities  at  Plymouth.  For  this 
treachery  he  was  murdered,  and  three  Wampanoags,  who  were  convicted  of 
the  crime  on  very  slender  testimony,  were  hanged.  The  anger  of  the  tribe 
was  fiercely  kindled  by  the  event,  and  they  were  clamorous  for  war.  The 
cautious  Philip  hesitated,  for  he  knew  his  weakness.  His  young  warriors 
would  not  listen  to  reason.  They  taunted  him  with  causing  the  wrongs 
which  his  people  endured  because  of  his  unwillingness  to  fight.  Then  they 
pointed  to  the  humiliation  and  disgrace  of  his  people  when,  a few  years 
before,  their  firearms  were  taken  from  them  by  the  jealous  white  men.  His 
eyes  kindled  with  rage.  He  had  never  forgotten  nor  forgiven  that  injury. 
The  reminder  excited  his  fiercest  wrath.  Springing  from  his  seat  he 
snatched  up  a bow  and  quiver,  a gleaming  hatchet  and  a keen  knife,  and 
vowed  that  none  of  these  weapons  should  sleep  whilst  a pale-face  remained 
in  New  England.  He  sent  his  women  and  children  to  the  Narragansets  for 
protection  ; and  yielding  his  judgment  to  passion,  he  trampled  upon  solemn 
treaties  and  kindled  the  flames  of  war.  Swift  runners  were  dispatched  to 
other  tribes  to  arouse  them  to  co-operation,  and  he  required  all  of  his 
followers  to  curse  the  white  man  and  to  swear  eternal  hostility  to  his  race. 
It  was  but  a foolish  rushing  to  destruction.  It  has  been  well  said  : “ Frenzy 
prompted  their  rising.  It  was  but  the  storm  in  which  the  ancient  inhabi- 
tants of  the  land  were  to  vanish  away.  They  rose  without  hope,  and  there- 
fore they  fought  without  mercy.  To  them,  as  a nation,  there  was  no 
to-morrow.” 

Philip  struck  the  first  blow  at  Swanzey,  twenty-five  miles  southwest  from 
Plymouth.  It  was  on  the  4th  of  July,  1675.  Expecting  hostilities,  the 
people  had  been  to  the  house  of  worship  to  engage  in  fasting  and  prayer. 
As  they  were  returning — men,  women  and  children — the  savages  fell  upon 
them  furiously,  slaying  and  capturing  many,  while  others  fled  to  .the  sur- 
rounding settlements.  The  country  was  aroused.  Armed  men  from 
Plymouth,  Boston,  and  other  places  near,  joined,  and  making  a forced 
march  toward  Mount  Hope,  besieged  the  Wampanoags  in  a swamp  several 
days.  Philip  escaped  with  most  of  his  followers,  and  took  refuge  with  the 
Nipmucs  in  the  interior  of  Massachusetts,  who  espoused  his  cause.  At  the 
head  of  fifteen  hundred  warriors  he  pressed  through  the  forests  to  the  beau- 
tiful valley  of  the  Connecticut  to  lay  waste  the  settlements  there. 

Meanwhile  the  armed  white  men  entered  the  country  of  the  Narragan- 
sets, and  compelled  Canonchet,  son  of  Miantonomah,  then  chief  sachem  of 
that  people,  to  make  a treaty  of  friendship  with  the  English.  When  Philip 
heard  of  this  he  was  amazed.  His  stout  heart  almost  failed.  But  reflecting 

o 


398 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  III. 


upon  the  perilous  nature  of  his  enterprise  and  his  position,  and  that  every- 
thing depended  upon  vigorous  action,  he  aroused  other  tribes  to  join  him  in 
exterminating  the  pale-faces  by  the  methods  of  treachery,  ambush,  and 
surprise.  The  scourge  that  now  appeared  was  terrible.’  Men  in  the  fields, 
families  in  their  beds  at  midnight,  and  congregations  in  houses  of  worship, 
were  murdered.  The  English  settlements  east  of  the  Hudson  then  num- 
bered about  fifty  thousand  souls,  and,  at  one  time,  it  seemed  probable  that 


AN  INDIAN  RAID. 


few  of  them  would  escape  the  fury  of  the  savages,  who  hung  upon  and 
enveloped  the  parties  like  a consuming  fire. 

The  Wampanoag  chief  entered  the  Connecticut  Valley  at  Springfield, 
and  swept  northward  almost  to  the  present  line  between  Massachusetts  and 
Vermont  like  a destructive  tornado,  leaving  desolation  in  his  track.  Near 


Chap.  VIII. 


A MERCILESS  WAR  BY  INDIANS. 


399 


Brookfield,  a party  of  twenty  Englishmen,  while  on  their  way,  at  near  the 
middle  of  August,  to  treat  with  the  Nipmucs,  fell  into  an  ambush  and  were 
treacherously  murdered.  Almost  every  house  in  Brookfield  was  set  on  fire — 
excepting  a stone  one — into  which  the  people  had  gathered  for  safety. 
There  they  were  besieged  two  days,  when  the  Indians  set  the  house  on  fire. 
Just  at  that  moment  a shower  of  rain  came  like  a providence  and  put  out 
the  flames,  and  at  the  same  time  a relief  party  of  white  people,  under  Major 
Willard,  arrived,  and  drove  away  the  savages.  Early  in  September  a hot 
battle  was  fought  at  Deerfield,  where  seven  hundred  Indians  were  defeated 
by  one  hundred  and  eighty  Englishmen  ; but  a week  later,  prowling  savages 
laid  the  town  in  ashes.  On  the  same  day — the  Sabbath — Hadley  was 
attacked,  and,  as  we  have  seen,  was  saved  by  the  bravery  of  Goffe  the 
regicide. 

For  a moment  the  scourge  was  stayed  at  Hadley,  but  it  soon  swept 
mercilessly  over  other  settlements.  The  blood  of  many  valiant  young  men, 
under  Captain  Beers,  flowed  freely  in  the  paths  of  Northfield,  late  in  Sep- 
tember. A few  days  afterward  a company  of  young  men  of  highest  charac- 
ter— “the  flower  of  Essex” — under  Captain  Lathrop,  were  murdered  by 
many  hundred  Indians  on  the  banks  of  a little  stream  near  Deerfield,  which  is 
yet  known  as  Bloody  Brook,  when  the  savages  were  beaten  off  by  others  who 
came  to  the  rescue.  Springfield  was  burned,  and  Hadley  was  again  assailed. 

The  Indians  were  masters  of  the  situation,  and  Philip,  encouraged  by  his 
successes,  now  resolved  to  attack  Hatfield,  the  chief  settlement  above 
Springfield.  He  was  joined  by  the  natives  there  who,  until  then,  had  been 
friendly  to  the  English.  They  showed  much  zeal,  and  at  near  the  close  of 
October,  Philip  gathered  his  warriors  around  a huge  fire,  when  the  braves 
engaged  in  the  wild  scalp-dance,  chanting  heroic  songs.  Upon  long  poles 
they  exhibited  trophies  of  their  horrid  work — the  long  shining  tresses  of 
women  and  even  the  bright  curls  of  little  maidens  whom  they  had  slain — as 
they  whirled  around  the  flames  with  fearful  contortions  of  limbs  and  body. 
Then,  with  almost  a thousand  warriors,  the  Wampanoags  fell  upon  the 
settlement.  The  people  were  prepared  for  the  onslaught.  They  had 
palisaded  their  houses  with  heavy  timber  standing  upright  in  the  ground 
bound  close  together  with  green  withes,  and  the  upper  ends  sharpened. 
Behind  these  stood  armed  men  and  resolute  women  waiting  for  the  approach 
of  the  Indians,  and  when  they  came  they  were  repulsed  with  such  slaughter 
that  Philip  left  the  Connecticut  Valley,  with  his  shattered  forces,  and  fled  to 
Rhode  Island.  The  Narragansets,  in  violation  of  their  recent  treaty  with 
the  English,  received  him  with  open  arms,  became  his  allies,  and,  late  in  the 
year,  went  out  upon  the  war-path  with  him. 


400 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  HI. 


This  perfidy  of  Canonchet  and  his  people  was  terribly  punished  by  the 
English  at  the  close  of  the  year.  Fifteen  hundred  armed  men  from  Massa- 
chusetts, Plymouth  and  Connecticut,  under  Captain  Josiah  Winslow,  marched 
into  the  Narraganset  country.  The  Indians,  three  thousand  strong,  had 
gathered  in  their  wigwams  within  a large  fort  in  the  bosom  of  a dark  swamp 
near  the  present  village  of  Kingston,  Washington  county,  Rhode  Island, 
with  their  store  of  winter  provisions.  Snow  had  fallen  to  a great  depth, 
and  the  savages  felt  secure  for  the  season.  Suddenly,  at  near  the  end  of 
December,  Winslow  and  his  little  army  appeared  before  the  fort  in  the 
frozen  swamp.  They  soon  beat  down  the  feeble  palisades,  and  in  the  course 
of  a few  hours  hundreds  of  men,  women  and  children,  with  all  the  provisions, 
perished  in  the  fire.  About  a thousand  warriors  were  killed  or  wounded, 
and  several  hundreds  were  made  prisoners.  Among  the  latter  was  Canon- 
chet, who  was  put  to  death.  Philip,  and  a remnant  of  the  Narragansets, 
escaped,  and  took  refuge  with  the  Nipmucs.  Eighty  Englishmen  were 
killed,  and  one  hundred  and  fifty  were  wounded.  The  surviving  savages 
suffered  fearfully.  Hiding  in  a cedar  swamp,  with  no  shelter  but  evergreen 
boughs,  no  food  but  nuts  and  roots  which  they  might  find  beneath  the  deep 
snow,  many  of  them  perished.  So  disappeared  the  dominion  of  the  Narra- 
gansets. 

Philip  was  not  idle  during  the  winter.  He  tried  in  vain  to  induce  the 
Mohawks  to  join  him.  Some  of  the  exasperated  Indians  eastward  of  Massa- 
chusetts flocked  to  his  standard,  and  early  in  the  spring  of  1676  the  work 
of  destruction  began.  In  the  course  of  a few  weeks,  the  war  spread  over 
an  area  of  almost  three  hundred  miles.  Villages  and  isolated  dwellings 
were  burned,  and  their  inmates  were  destroyed.  Weymouth,  Groton, 
Medford,  Lancaster  and  Marlborough,  in  Massachusetts,  were  laid  in  ashes ; 
and  Warwick  and  Providence,  in  Rhode  Island,  were  given  to  the  flames. 

A terrible  scene  occurred  at  Lancaster.  Forty-two  persons  took  shelter 
in  the  house  of  Mary  Rowlandson.  It  was  set  on  fire  by  the  Indians. 
“ Quickly,”  wrote  Mrs.  Rowlandson  in  her  narrative,  “ it  was  the  dolefullest 
day  that  ever  mine  eyes  saw.  Now  the  dreadful  hour  is  come.  Some  in 
our  house  were  fighting  for  their  lives ; others  wallowing  in  blood  ; the  house 
on  fire  over  our  heads,  and  the  bloody  heathen  ready  to  knock  us  on  the 
head  if  we  stirred  out.  I took  my  children  to  go  forth  ; but  the  Indians 
shot  so  thick  that  the  bullets  rattled  against  the  house  as  if  one  had  thrown 
a handful  of  stones.  We  had  six  stout  dogs,  but  none  of  them  would  stir.” 
A bullet  went  through  Mrs.  Rowlandson’s  side,  and  another  through  a child 
in  her  arms,  and  she  was  made  captive,  having  of  her  family  only  one  poor 
wounded  babe  left.  “ Down  I must  sit  in  the  snow,”  she  continued,  “ with 


Chap.  VIII. 


END  OF  PHILIP'S  WAR. 


401 


my  sick  child,  the  picture  of  death,  in  my  lap.  Not  the  least  crumb  of 
refreshing  came  within  our  mouths  from  Wednesday  night  until  Saturday 
night,  except  a little  cold  water.” 

Quarrels  among  themselves  soon  weakened  the  power  of  the  Indians. 
The  Nipmucs  and  the  Narragansets  charged  their  misfortunes  to  the 
ambition  of  Philip.  The  alliance  was  dissolved.  The  eastern  Indians 
hastened  to  their  mountain  fastnesses.  Many  who  had  been  in  arms  sur- 
rendered to  avoid  starvation.  Others  marched  off  to  Canada  and  joined 
some  of  the  tribes  there ; and  Captain  Benjamin  Church,  the  most  famous 


THE  CAPTIVE  MOTHER  AND  BABE. 


Indian  fighter  of  his  day,  hunted  and  slew  all  the  hostile  red-men  he  could 
find.  Between  two  and  three  thousand  of  them  perished  or  submitted  in 
the  course  of  the  year  1676,  and  the  proud  Narragansets,  to  whom  other 
tribes  had  paid  homage,  were  reduced  to  a hundred  bowmen.  Like  the 
Pequods,  they  were  utterly  ruined. 

Philip  eluded  his  pursuers  for  several  months,  hiding  in  many  places, 
with  a resolution  to  never  surrender.  He  had  a handful  of  faithful  followers. 


402 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  111. 


but  he  cleaved  the  head  of  one  of  these  friends  with  his  hatchet,  because 
he  counselled  submission.  At  last  circumstances  conquered  his  pride  and 
his  will.  He  returned  secretly  to  Mount  Hope.  His  wife  and  son  were 
soon  afterward  made  captive,  when  the  “ last  of  the  Wampanoags  ” bowed 
beneath  this  crushing  misfortune,  and  said : “Now  my  heart  breaks;  I am 
ready  to  die.”  Captain  Church  was  then  close  upon  his  track;  and  a few 
days  afterward,  a faithless  Indian  shot  him  in  a swamp.  Church  cut  off  the 
dead  king’s  head  with  his  sword,  and  it  was  borne  upon  a pole  into  Plymouth 
while  hymns  of  thanksgiving  were  sung  by  the  people.  The  ghastly  trophy 
was  placed  upon  the  palisades ; and  the  people  slept  that  night  with  a sense 
of  security  which  they  had  not  felt  for  years. 

The  disposition  of  Philip’s  little  son— the  heir  to  the  throne  of  Mas- 
sasoit — was  a subject  of  grave  debate.  Some  of  the  elders  proposed  putting 
him  to  death.  Others  suggested  selling  him  as  a slave.  The  most  profitable 
measure  appeared  to  be  the  most  merciful,  and  the  boy  was  sold  to  be  a 
bond-slave  in  Bermuda.  So  perished  the  dynasty  of  the  good  Massasoit, 
and  so  ended  the  famous  King  Philip' s War.  The  Mohegans,  who  held 
sway  in  Connecticut,  were  firm  friends  of  the  English,  and  not  a drop  of 
blood  was  shed  in  that  colony  during  the  war.  The  other  colonies  had 
suffered  dreadfully.  More  than  six  hundred  men,  chiefly  young,  had  fallen 
in  the  struggle.  Thirteen  villages  had  been  destroyed.  A large  number  of 
women  and  children  had  been  murdered  or  carried  into  captivity.  Full  six 
hundred  houses  were  burned,  and  the  cost  of  the  expenditures  and  the  losses 
equalled  in  value  half  a million  dollars.  The  war  was  carried  on  a little 
longer  by  the  Eastern  Indians,  for  they  drew  supplies  from  the  P'rench  in 
Acadia.  Finally,  in  1678,  hostilities  were  ended  by  a treaty. 

While  Massachusetts  was  feeling  the  heavy  losses  of  her  sons  and 
treasure,  the  English  government  attempted  to  carry  out  a long-cherished 
desire  of*  the  king  to  resume  the  control  of  the  colony.  The  Privy  Council 
sent  Edward  Randolph,  a greedy  adventurer  and  faithful  servant  of  his 
royal  master,  to  collect  the  customs  at  Boston,  to  exercise  other  authority 
as  the  agent  of  the  crown,  and  to  spy  out  the  strength  and  weakness  of  the 
people.  Randolph  excited  the  cupidity,  fears  and  jealousy  of  the  king  and 
his  court,  by  exaggerating  the  number  of  the  population,  wealth,  power  and 
independence  of  the  colony;  and,  being  rejected  by  the  authorities  of 
Massachusetts,  his  wrath  gave  vehemence  to  his  assertions.  The  governor 
(Leverett)  was  firm  in  his  opposition  to  Randolph’s  pretensions.  “ The 
king,”  he  said,  “ can  in  reason  do  no  less  than  let  us  enjoy  our  liberties  and 
trade,  for  we  have  made  this  large  plantation  in  the  wilderness  at  our  own 
charge,  without  any  contribution  from  the  crown.”  Because  of  this  spirit 


Chap.  Vlll. 


EFFORTS  TO  ENSLAVE  MASSACHUSETTS. 


403 


of  independence,  the  people  were  reproached.  “You  are  poor,”  said  the 
Earl  of  Anglesey,  “ and  yet  proud.” 

They  were  justly  “ proud.”  They  had  established  a free  and  flourishing 
state,  and  were  resolved  to  maintain  their  natural  and  chartered  rights  at  all 
hazards.  When  Randolph,  by  royal  authority,  declared  the  charter  of 
Massachusetts  to  be  void,  and  attempted  to  govern,  the  people  spurned  him. 
Then  the  king  resolved  to  make  the  colony  a “ more  palpable  dependence,” 
and  issued  a writ  of  quo  warranto — a comrnand  for  the  authorities  to  appear 
before  the  monarch  and  his  council  and  show  by  what  warrant  they  held 
jurisdiction  in  Massachusetts.  It  was  his  intention  to  exercise  the  arbitrary 
power  of  his  grandfather,  James  the  First,  if  necessary,  by  taking  possession 
of  the  domain  without  forms  of  law;  but  a pliant  High  Court  of  Chancery 
decided  in  the  king’s  favor.  Before  the  monarch  could  effect  his  object  he 
died.  That  was  early  in  1685. 

Charles’s  brother,  the  Duke  of  York,  now  ascended  the  throne  as  James 
the  Second.  More  tyrannical  than  his  predecessor,  he  declared,  without  the 
formalities  of  law,  the  charter  of  Massachusetts  to  be  void,  and  appointed 
Joseph  Dudley  president  of  the  country  from  Rhode  Island  to  Nova  Scotia. 
All  England,  misinformed  by  the  rulers,  approved  the  measure,  and  the  tone 
of  society  there  was  one  of  contempt  for  the  “ plantations.”  Dryden,  whose 
muse  was  then  subservient  to  the  crown,  wrote  in  a dramatic  prologue : 

“ Since  faction  ebbs,  and  rogues  go  out  of  fashion, 

Their  penny  scribes  take  care  to  inform  the  nation, 

How  well  men  thrive  in  this  or  that  plantation. 

“ How  Pennsylvania’s  air  agrees  with  Quakers, 

And  Carolina’s,  with  Associators  ; 

Both  e’en  too  good  for  madmen  and  for  traitors. 

“Truth  is,  our  land  with  saints  is  so  run  o’er. 

And  every  age  produces  such  a store. 

That  now  there’s  need  of  two  New  Englands  more.” 

Dudley  was  succeeded  by  Edmund  Andros,  who  arrived  in  Boston  late  in 
1686,  bearing  the  commission  of  viceroy  or  governor-general  of  all  New 
England.  His  character  and  purpose  have  already  been  considered  on 
355*  The  rigid  executor  of  his  master’s  will,  he  soon  made  the  rod  of 
oppression  keenly  felt.  He  abridged  the  freedom  of  the  press ; interfered 
with  marriage  contracts,  and  frequently  extorted  money— levied  “ black- 
mail ” — advanced  the  fees  of  all  officers  of  government,  and  threatened 
to  make  the  Church  of  England  the  established  religion  in  all  America. 


404 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  111. 


The  people  of  Massachusetts  resented  his  conduct,  and,  in  compliance  with 
the  doctrine  of  Cromwell’s  motto,  “ resistance  to  tyrants  is  obedience  to  God” 
they  were  about  to  drive  him  out  of  the  colony  by  force  of  arms,  when  the 
news  came  from  England  that  James  had  been  driven  from  the  throne. 
That  news  reached  Boston  in  April,  1689,  with  the  welcome  tidings  that 
Protestant  William  and  Mary  were  on  that  throne. 

This  intelligence,  like  an  electric  spark,  kindled  an  insurrection  which 
burst  out  spontaneously  in  Boston,  and  in  a few  hours  the  revolt  became 
universal.  Andros  sent  soldiers  to  arrest  the  venerable  Simon  Bradstreet, 
then  ninety  years  of  age,  as  the  most  obnoxious  republican  in  the  city. 
He  was  governor  when  the  king  struck  down  the  liberties  of  Massachusetts 
by  taking  away  its  charter.  The  people  immediately  reinstated  him.  From 
the  balcony  of  the  State-House,  the  vigorous  old  man,  with  long  white  hair 
and  beard  flowing  over  his  shoulders  and  breast,  addressed  the  populace 
with  eloquent  words.  They  seized  Andros  and  fifty  of  his  most  obnoxious 
associates,  and  cast  them  into  prison.  A Committee  of  Safety  was  appointed. 
An  assembly  of  representatives  were  soon  convened.  That  body,  by  unani- 
mous vote,  declared  their  ancient  charter  to  be  resumed.  In  May,  William 
and  Mary  were  proclaimed  in  the  colony ; and  from  their  sovereigns  the 
provisional  government  of  Massachusetts  received  a letter  sanctioning  their 
late  proceedings,  and  directing  them  to  send  Andros  to  England  to  answer 
the  charges  preferred  against  him. 

Another  storm  of  disaster  was  now  brooding  over  Massachusetts.  King 
James  (who  was  a Roman  Catholic)  had  fled  to  the  court  of  Louis  the 
Fourteenth,  a co-religionist  and  kinsman,  who  espoused  his  cause.  William, 
as  Prince  of  Orange,  was  then  at  the  head  of  a coalition  of  several  powers 
in  a Protestant  league  against  Louis ; and  soon  after  his  accession,  England 
became  a member  of  that  league  and  declared  war  against  France.  Hostili- 
ties between  the  two  nations  began  the  same  year  (1689);  and  the  quarrel 
soon  extended  to  their  respective  colonies  in  America.  Here  it  became  a 
strife  chiefly  for  a monopoly  of  the  fur-trade  and  the  fisheries.  The  conflict 
then  opened,  and  which  continued  more  than  seven  years,  is  known  in  our 
history  as  King  William’s  War. 

There  was  a powerful  and  controlling  religious  element  in  that  contest, 
and  in  others  which  occurred  between  the  French  and  English  in  America. 
In  fact  the  power  of  France  had  been  carried  into  the  heart  of  the  American 
continent  more  by  the  zeal  and  patience  of  religious  enthusiasts,  than  by  the 
ambition  of  monarchs,  the  wisdom  of  statesmen,  or  the  greed  of  commoner. 

Coeval  with  the  rise  of  Protestantism  in  Germany,  was  the  foundation 
of  a society  designed  to  counteract  its  influence.  It  w*as  established  by 


Chap.  VIII. 


INFLUENCE  OF  THE  JESUITS. 


405 


Ignatius  Loyola,  a Spanish  enthusiast,  and  was  called  the  Society  of  Jesus. 
It  is  better  known  in  later  times  as  the  Order  of  Jesuits.  Their  organiza- 
tion was  as  perfect  as  any  which  human  wisdom  has  yet  devised  for  a special 
obj'ect.  They  are  not  a society  of  priests,  but  of  Roman  Catholics  of  every 
degree,  bound  by  a solemn  oath  to  extend  the  sway  of  the  Church  of  Rome, 
and  to  fight  Protestantism  wherever  it  may  be  found.  Their  missionaries 
were  soon  found  proselyting  in  every  quarter  of  the  globe.  They  regarded 
as  a brother  every  man,  without 
respect  to  skin  or  lineage  ; and 
the  French  Jesuits,  who  were  the 
pioneers  of  French  dominion  in 
America,  regarded  every  convert 
to  Christianity  among  the  sav- 
ages an  enfranchised  citizen  of 
P'rance.  Whole  tribes  came 
under  their  spiritual  sway,  and 
many  of  the  votaries  of  com- 
merce, who  followed  them  into 
the  wilds  of  America  to  traffic 
with  the  Indians,  made  wives  of 
the  native  maidens,  and  so  estab- 
lished strong  social  ties  between 
the  French  and  the  savages. 

When,  therefore,  the  former  quar- 
relled with  the  English,  they 
could  rely  upon  the  latter  as 
faithful  allies  ; and  this  barbarian 
element  in  the  contest  made 
border  wars  tenfold  more  dis- 
tressing to  the  English  colonists, 
especially  to  those  of  New  Eng-  waldron  seized  by  Indians. 

land.  The  border  settlers  in 

New  York  had  the  powerful  Iroquois  Confederacy,  like  a strong  wall,  between 
themselves  and  the  Indians  in  Canada.  . 

The  eastern  Indians  were  easily  excited  into  hostility  by  those  white 
allies.  Dover,  a frontier  town  of  New  Hampshire,  was  the  first  to  feel  the 
violent  hands  of  the  mongrel  foe.  There  three  hundred  Indians  had  been 
treacherously  doomed  to  slavery  years  before.  Revenge  had  slumbered ; 
now  it  was  awakened  and  was  gratified.  The  venerable  Major  Waldron, 
then  eighty  years  of  age,  and  a local  magistrate,  had  been  a party  to  the 


4o6 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Hcjok  111. 


treachery.  On  a warm  evening  in  July,  1689,  two  squaws  craved  lodging  at 
his  house.  They  lay  upon  the  floor,  and  in  the  night  they  unbarred  the 
doors  and  let  in  several  painted  warriors.  The  aroused  old  man  seized  his 
sword  and  fought  valiantly,  until  he  was  overpowered,  when,  with  bitter 
taunts,  they  tortured  him  to  death  in  his  own  hall.  Then  they  laid  his 
house  in  ashes,  killed  twenty  of  the  garrison,  and  carried  away  nearly  thirty 
persons  and  sold  them  as  slaves  to  the  F'rench  in  Canada. 

In  August,  a party  came  from  Penobscot,  after  being  purified  by  con- 
fession by  Thury  a Jesuit  priest,  and  captured  the  garrison  at  Pemaquid, 
which  Andros  had  established  there.  In  February  following.  Governor 
Frontenac  sent  three  hundred  French  and  Indians  from  Montreal  to  destroy 
Albany.  Through  deep  snows  they  made  their  way  as  far  as  Schenectady, 
a frontier'  town  on  the  Mohawk,  and  at  midnight  burned  the  dwellings  and 
murdered  more  than  sixty  of  the  inhabitants  there.  Seventeen  of  the  slain 
were  children.  Early  the  next  spring  several  eastern  villages  shared  the 
same  fate,  and  scores  of  women  and  children  were  carried  away  captives  and 
suffered  untold  cruelties. 

These  atrocities — murders  in  cold  blood — aroused  all  the  colonies  to  a 
sense  of  danger,  and  on  the  suggestion  of  Massachusetts,  a congress  of 
delegates  from  several  colonies  met  at  New  York  on  the  first  of  May,  1690, 
to  devise  measures  for  the  general  security.  Already  the  colony  of  Massa- 
chusetts had  fitted  out  an  expedition  against  Acadia,  under  Sir  William 
Phipps,  of  Pemaquid,  consisting  of  eight  vessels  with  eight  hundred  men. 
He  seized  Port  Royal,  and  obtained  plunder  sufficient  to  pay  the  expenses 
of  the  expedition.  The  town  was  again  plundered  by  English  privateers 
from  the  West  Indies,  in  June;  so  retaliation  went  on.  The  Congress  at 
New  York  resolved  to  invade  Canada  by  land  and  sea,  with  an  army  that 
should  march  from  the  Hudson  River  by  way  of  Lake  Champlain  to  Mon- 
treal ; and,  at  the  same  time,  a strong  naval  armament  was  to  ascend  the 
St.  Lawrence  and  attack  Quebec.  The  army  was  placed  under  the  command 
of  a son  of  Governor  Winthrop,  of  Connecticut,  the  cost  of  the  expedition 
being  borne  jointly  by  that  colony  and  New  York  ; and  Milborne,  son-in-law 
of  Leisler  [see  Chapter  Y of  this  Book],  undertook  to  furnish  the  supplies. 
The  command  of  the  fleet,  which  was  composed  of  thirty-four  vessels 
manned  by  two  thousand  New  Englanders,  was  given  to  Phipps. 

The  army  moved  from  Albany  early  in  July,  at  a snail’s  pace.  At  the 
beginning  of  September  the  bulk  of  them  had  only  reached  the  head  of 
Lake  Champlain,  where  thej"  remained,  while  some  troops,  and  Indians  of 
the  Five  Nations,  under  Colonel  Peter  Schuyler,  pushed  on  toward  the  St. 
Lawrence.  Old  Frontenac  was  in  Montreal  when  an  Indian  runner  told  him 


Chap.  VIII. 


EXPEDITION  AGAINST  QUEBEC. 


407 


of  the  approach  of  the  invaders.  He  called  out  his  Indian  allies.  Taking 
a tomahawk  in  his  hand,  he  danced  the  war-dance  and  chanted  the  war-song, 
in  their  presence,  and  then  led  them  against  the  foe.  Schuyler  was  repulsed, 
and  the  whole  army  returned  to  Albany.  Leisler  charged  Winthrop  with 
treachery,  and  Winthrop,  in  turn,  charged  the  failure  of  the  expedition  to 
the  inefficiency  of  Milborne  in  furnishing  supplies. 

Meanwhile  Phipps,  without  charts  or  pilots,  had  crawled  cautiously 
around  Acadid  and  up  the  St.  Lawrence  for  nine  weeks,  giving  a swift 
Indian  runner  an  opportunity  to  go  from  Pemaquid  to  Canada  with  the 
news  of  Phipps’  departure,  in  time  to  allow  Frontenac  to  reach  Quebec 
before  the  arrival  of  the  hostile  fleet.  The  fortifications  of  the  ancient 
town  were  strengthened ; and  when  Phipps  arrived  before  it,  and  sent 
a summons  for  its  surrender,  his  message  was  treated  with  derision.  It 
was  then  the  middle  of  October.  Hearing  of  the  failure  of  the  land  expe- 
dition, Phipps  weighed  anchor  and  crawled  cautiously  back  to  New  Eng- 
land before  the  winter  storms  set  in.  The  French  and  Indians  in  Canada 
and  Acadid  were  greatly  elated,  and  the  repulse  was  considered  so  im- 
portant by  Louis  that  he  ordered  a commemorative  medal  to  be  struck, 
with  the  legend:  FRANCE  VICTORIOUS  IN  THE  New  World.  These 

military  operations  exhausted  the  treasury  of  Massachusetts,  and  the 
government  emitted  bills  of  credit  to  the  amount  of  about  one  hundred  and 
thirty-four  thousand  dollars.  This  was  the  first  paper-money  ever  issued  on 
the  American  continent. 

Soon  after  his  return  from  the  St.  Lawrence,  Sir  William  Phipps  went  to 
England  to  solicit  aid  for  the  colonies  in  their  further  warfare  with  the 
French  and  Indians,  and  to  assist  in  efforts  there  to  procure  a restoration  of 
the  charter  of  Massachusetts  which  King  James  had  annulled.  Aid  was 
refused  ; and  instead  of  restoring  the  old  charter,  William  gave  a new  one, 
by  which  Massachusetts,  Plymouth,  Maine  and  Nova  Scotia  were  united 
under  the  name  of  “ Massachusetts  Bay  Colony,”  and  was  made  a royal 
province,  with  Phipps  as  governor.  The  baronet  was  a man  of  dull  intellect, 
rudely  educated,  utterly  lacking  in  qualities  of  statesmanship,  headstrong, 
egotistical,  superstitious,  patriotic,  and  every  way  unfitted  as  a leader  in 
civil  and  military  affairs.  He  had  gained  distinction  in  his  native  colony 
only  by  his  wealth  and  title,  both  of  which  were  acquired  by  his  successful 
raising  of  treasure  from  a Spanish  ship  with  a diving-bell.  He  returned  to 
Massachusetts  in  1692,  bringing  the  new  charter  with  him. 

The  people  of  Massachusetts  were  not  only  dissatisfied  with  the  new 
charter,  but  offended  by  it,  for  it  greatly  abridged  their  liberties.  Wise  and 
enlightened  statesmen  and  churchmen  in  England  advised  William  and  his 
27 


4o8 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


B(X)K  111. 


Parliament  not  to  make  the  liberties  of  the  colonists  less.  Tillotson,  the 
Archbishop  of  Canterbury,  charged  the  king  “ not  to  take  away  from  the 
people  of  New  England  any  of  the  privileges  which  Charles  the  First  had 
granted  them.”  Others  did  likewise ; but  the  government  refused  to  listen 
to  wise  advice.  The  king  reserved  the  right,  in  the  new  charter,  to  appoint 
the  governor,  his  deputy  and  the  secretary  of  the  colony,  and  of  repealing 
all  the  laws  within  three  years  after  their  passage.  This  robbery  of  their 
liberties  alienated  the  affections  of  the  people  from  the  mother  country.  It 
was  one  of  the  series  of  blunders  made  by  the  crown  and  ministers  which 
fostered  discontent  in  the  colonies  and  tended  to  the  final  dismemberment 
of  the  empire  in  1776. 

Yet  in  some  respects  the  new  charter  was  an  improvement  upon  the  old. 
While  the  rights  of  citizens  were  abridged  in  some  things,  they  were 
enlarged  in  others.  Toleration  was  granted  to  ever>'  form  of  the  Christian 
religion  excepting,  unfortunately,  the  Roman  Catholic ; and  the  right  of 
suffrage — to  vote — was  no  longer  restricted  to  members  of  Congregational 
churches,  but  was  made  almost  universal.  Bigotry  and  intolerance  were,  so 
far,  disarmed  ; and  they  never  afterward  held  controlling  sway  in  the  policy 
of  the  State. 

Here  let  us  pause  a moment  in  our  narrative  of  political  transactions  and 
of  the  horrid  war  then  raging,  to  consider  a strange  social  feature  in  the 
history  of  Massachusetts,  known  as  SALEM  WITCHCRAFT. 


CHAPTER  IX. 


WITCHCRAFT — THE  SAD  STORY  OF  “ SALEM  WITCHCRAFT  ” — SUPERSTITION  AND  WICKEDNESS 
HAND-IN-HAND  — RESULT  OF  THE  DELUSION — KING  WILLIAM’S  WAR — NEW  ENGLAND’S  SUFFER- 
INGS— CAPTURE  OF  PEMAQUID — THE  BARON  DE  CASTIN— FRENCH  AND  INDIANS  MAKE  WAR 
TOGETHER — THE  EXPLOIT  OF  HANNAH  DUSTIN  AND  HER  COMPANIONS — TREATY  AT  RYSWICK 
— THE  PRETENDER — QUEEN  ANNE — NEW  ENGLAND  MORE  TOLERANT. 


IN  the  seventeenth  century,  a belief  in  witches  and  witchcraft  was  almost 
universal.  The  Church  of  Rome,  more  than  three  hundred  years  ago, 
sanctioned  punishments  for  the  exercise  of  witchcraft  ; and  after  that, 
thousands  of  suspected  persons  were  burned  alive,-  drowned  or  hanged. 
During  the  sixteenth  century,  more  than  one  hundred  thousand  accused  and 
convicted  persons  perished  in  the  flames,  in  Germany  alone.  In  England, 
enlightened  men  embraced  the  belief.  The  eminent  Sir  Matthew  Hale,  who 
flourished  during  the  civil  war,  the  commonwealth  and  the  period  of  the 
restoration  of  monarchy,  repeatedly  sentenced  persons  to  death  accused  of 
witchcraft.  The  Puritans  brought  the  belief  with  them  to  America.  They 
established  laws  for  the  punishment  of  w'itches ; and  before  1648,  four 
persons  had  suffered  death  for  the  alleged  offence,  in  the  vicinity  of  Boston. 
The  ministers  of  the  gospel  there  were  shadowed  by  the  delusion  ; and, 
because  of  their  powerful  social  influence,  they  did  more  to  foster  the  wild 
excitement  and  produce  the  distressing  results  of  what  is  known  in  his- 
tory as  “ Salem  witchcraft,”  than  all  others. 

In  1688,  a wayward  daughter  of  John  Goodwin,  of  Boston,  about  thirteen 
years  of  age,  accused  a servant  girl  of  stealing  .some  of  the  family  linen. 
The  servant’s  mother,  a “ wild  Irish  vv-oman  ” and  a Roman  Catholic,  vehe- 
mently rebuked  the  accuser  as  a false  witness.  The  young  girl,  in  revenge, 
pretended  to  be  bewitched  by  the  Irishwoman.  Some  others  of  her  family 
followed  her  example.  They  would  alternately  become  deaf,  dumb  and 
blind ; bark  like  dogs  and  purr  like  cats,  but  none  of  them  lost  their  appe- 
tites nor  sleep.  The  Rev.  Cotton  Mather,  a credulous  and  egotistical  clergy- 
man (who  seems  to  have  believed,  with  Hubbard,  the  Puritan  historian,  that 
“America  was  originally  peopled  with  a crew  of. witches  transported  thither 
by  the  devil  ”),  hastened  to  Goodwin’s  house  to  allay  the  witchery  by 


410 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  111 


the  power  of  the  witch.  This  was  sufficient  proof  for  the  minds  of  the 
ministers  that  there  must  be  a witch  in  the  case,  and  these  deluded  clergy- 
men prosecuted  the  ignorant  Irish  woman  as  such.  She  was  bewildered 
before  the  court,  and  spoke  sometimes  in  her  native  Irish  language,  which 
nobody  could  understand,  and  which  her  accusers  and  judges  construed  into 
involuntary  confession.  Mather  and  his  clerical  associates  had  the  satisfac- 
tion of  seeing  the  poor  old  Irish  woman  hanged  as  a witch,  “ for  the  glory 
of  God.” 


prayer.  Wonderful  were  the  alleged  effects  of  his  supplications.  The 
devil  was  controlled  by  them  for  the  time.  Then  four  other  ministers  of 
Boston  and  one  of  Salem,  as  superstitious  as  himself,  joined  Mather,  and 
they  spent  a whole  day  in  the  house  of  the  “ afflicted  ” in  fasting  and 
prayer,  the  result  of  which  was  the  “delivery”  of  one  of  the  family  from 


DELIVERANCE  FROM  WITCHCRAFT  BY  PRAYER. 


Chap.  IX. 


CREDULITY  RUN  MAD. 


41I 

Skeptics  ridiculed  Mather.  He  defended  his  cause  by  the  assertion  of 
alleged  facts.  He  called  the  “ afflicted  ” daughter  of  Goodwin  to  his  study, 
when  the  artful  girl  thoroughly  deceived  him.  The  devil  would  allow  her  to 
read  “ Quaker  books,  the  Common  Prayer  and  Popish  books,”  but  a prayer 
from  the  lips  of  Mather,  or  the  reading  of  a chapter  of  the  Bible,  threw  her 
into  convulsions.  The  credulous  parson  believed  all  he  saw  and  heard,  and 
cried  from  his  pulpit,  with  outstretched  arms  and  loud  voice,  “ Witchcraft 
is  the  most  nefarious  high-treason  against  the  Majesty  on  High.  A witch  is 
not  to  be  endured  in  heaven  or  on  earth.”  Mather’s  discourse  on  the 
subject  was  scattered  broadcast  among  the  people  by  means  of  the  printing- 
press  ; and  with  it  went  out  his  narrative  of  the  events  in  the  Goodwin 
family,  which  led  to  greater  tragedies  in  the  spring  and  summer  of  1692, 
when  an  epidemic  disease  resembling  epilepsy  broke  out  in  Danvers  (then 
a part  of  Salem),  and  spread  rapidly.  The  physicians  could  neither  control 
nor  cure  it ; and  with  the  sermon  and  statements  of  Mather  before  them, 
they  readily  ascribed  the  malady  to  the  work  of  witches. 

A niece  and  daughter  of  the  parish  minister  at  Danvers  were  first 
afflicted.  Their  strange  and  unaccountable  actions  frightened  other  young 
women,  who  soon  exhibited  the  same  symptoms,  such  as  convulsions  and 
spasmodic  swellings  in  the  throat,  undoubtedly  produced  by  hysterics.  A 
belief  quickly  spread  over  Salem  and  throughout  the  province  that  evil 
spirits  having  ministering  servants  on  earth  had  been  permitted  to  over- 
shadow the  land  with  an  awful  visitation.  Terror  took  possession  of  the 
minds  of  nearly  all  the  people,  and  the  dread  made  the  malady  spread  widely. 

Other  old  and  ill-favored  women  now  shared  with  the  Irish  woman 
in  the  suspicion  of  being  witches,  and  several  of  them  were  publicly 
accused  and  imprisoned.  The  “ afflicted.”  under  the  influence  of  the 
witchery,  professed  to  see  the  forms  of  their  tormentors  with  their  “ inner 
vision,”  and  would  forthwith  accuse  some  individual  seen.  At  length  the 
“ afflicted  ” and  the  accused  became  so  numerous  that  no  person  was  safe 
from  suspicion  and  its  consequences.  Even  those  who  were  active  in  the 
prosecutions  became  objects  of  suspicion.  A magistrate  who  had  presided 
at  the  condemnation  of  several  persons,  becoming  convinced  of  the  wrong- 
fulness of  the  proceedings  and  protesting  against  it,  was  himself  accused  and 
suffered  much.  A constable,  who  had  arrested  many  and  refused  to  arrest 
any  more,  was  accused,  condemned  and  hanged.  Neither  age,  sex  nor  con- 
dition were  considered.  Sir  William  Phipps,  the  governor  of  Massachusetts, 
his  lieutenant-governor,  the  near  relations  of  the  Mathers,  and  learned  and 
distinguished  men  who  had  promoted  the  dreadful  delusion  by  acquiescing 
in  the  proceedings  against  accused  persons,  became  objects  of  suspicion. 


412 


OUR  COUMTKV. 


Book  HI. 


The  governor’s  wife,  Lady  Phipps,  one  of  the  purest  and  best  of  women, 
was  accused  of  being  a witch.  The  sons  of  Governor  Bradstreet  were  com- 
pelled to  fly  to  avoid  the  perils  of  false  accusations ; and  near  relati\  es  of 
the  Mathers  were  imprisoned  on  similar  charges.  Malice,  revenge  and 
rapacity  often  impelled  persons  to  accuse  others  who  were  innocent  ; and 
when  some  statement  of  the  accused  would  move  the  court  and  audience  in 
favor  of  the  prisoner,  the  accuser  would  solemnly  declare  that  he  saw  the 
devil  standing  beside  the  victim  whispering  the  touching  words  in  his  or  her 
ear.  And  the  absurd  statement  would  be  believed  by  the  judges  on  the 
bench.  Some,  terrified  and  with  the  hope  of  saving  their  lives  or  avoiding 
the  horrors  of  imprisonment,  would  falsely  accuse  their  friends  and  kinsfolk ; 
while  others,  moved  by  the  same  instinct  and  hopes,  would  falsely  confess 
themselves  to  be  witches. 

When  the  magnates  in  church  and  state  found  themselves  in  danger,  they 
thought  of  the  golden  rule,  and  suspected  they  had  been  acting  unrighte- 
ously toward  others.  They  cautiously  expressed  their  doubts  of  the  policy 
and  justice  of  further  proceedings  against  accused  persons.  A citizen  of 
Andover,  who  was  accused,  wiser  and  more  bold  than  governor  and  clergy, 
immediately  caused  the  arrest  of  his  accuser  on  a charge  of  defamation  of 
character,  and  laid  his  damages  at  five  thousand  dollars.  The  effect  of  this 
act  was  wonderful.  The  public  mind  was  in  sympathy  with  it.  The  spell 
was  instantly  broken,  and  witchcraft  was  no  more  heard  of  in  Andover. 
The  impression  then  made  quickly  spread  over  the  province,  and  deluded 
and  wicked  persons  hastened  to  make  amends  for  their  errors  and  crimes. 

The  abashed  clergy  were  compelled  to  take  action  because  of  the 
unexpected  change  in  public  opinion.  At  a convention  held  in  June,  1693, 
they  declared  that  it  was  not  inconsistent  with  Scripture  to  believe  that  the 
devil  might  assume  the  shape  of  a good  man,  and  that  he  may  so  have 
deceived  the  “afflicted.”  So  his  Satanic  majesty’ as  usual  was  conveniently 
made  the  scapegoat  for  the  sins  and  follies  of  magistrates,  clergy,  and  people. 
Many  of  the  accusers  and  witnesses  came  forward  and  published  solemn 
recantations  or  denials  of  the  truth  of  their  testimony,  which  had  been 
given,  they  said,  to  save  their  own  lives.  Governor  Phipps,  after  his  wife 
was  accused  and  the  Andover  citizen  had  killed  the  monster  delusion,  gave 
orders  for  the  release  of  all  persons  under  arrest  for  witchcraft.  The  Legis- 
lature of  Massachusetts  appointed  a day  for  a general  fast  and  solemn  sup- 
plication “that  God  would  pardon  all  the  errors  of  his  servants  and  people 
in  a late  tragedy  raised  among  us  by  Satan  and  his  instruments.”  And 
Judge  Sewall,  who  had  presided  at  many  trials  in  Salem,  stood  up  in  his 
place  in  church  on  that  fast  day,  and  implored  the  prayers  of  the  people 


Chap.  IX. 


ENDING  OF  THE  WITCHCRAFT  DELUSION. 


413 


that  the  errors  which  he  had  committed  “ might  not  be  visited  by  the  judg- 
ments of  an  avenging  God  on  his  country,  his  family,  or  himself.”  Mr. 
Paris,  the  parish  minister  in  Danvers,  in  whose  family  the  delusion  had  its 
rise,  and  who,  throughout  the  “ reign  of  terror,”  was  one  of  the  most  earnest 
prosecutors  of  alleged  witches,  was  compelled  to  resign  his  charge  and  leave 
the  country. 

These  recantations,  acknowledgments  of  error  and  pleadings  for  mercy, 
could  not  restore  to  the  bereaved  the  spirits  of  those  who  had  been  hanged, 
nor  make  amends  for  the  pains  others  had  suffered.  The  delusion  had  pre- 
vailed in  greatest  vehemence  more  than  sjx  months,  and  it  was  not  allayed 
for  more  than  a year.  During  that  time  nineteen  persons  had  been  hanged, 
and  one  had  been  killed  by  the  horrid  process  of  pressing  to  death  ; fifty- 
five  had  been  tortured  or  frightened  into  a confession  of  guilt ; one  hundred 
and  fifty  had  been  imprisoned,  and  full  two  hundred  had  been  named  as 
worthy  of  arrest.  Amongst  those  hanged  was  the  Rev.  Mr.  Burroughs,  an 
exemplary  clergyman,  whose  purity  of  character  was  conspicuous.  Others, 
whose  innocence  and  good  name  should  have  shielded  them  from  harm,  were 
coarsely  assailed  at  the  scaffold.  One  aged  citizen,  as  was  afterward  proven, 
was  falsely  accused  by  a malignant  enemy.  While  declaring  his  innocence 
to  the  multitudes,  smoke  from  the  executioner’s  pipe  choked  his  utterances, 
when  his  accuser  and  his  associates  brutally  shouted : “ See  how  the  devil 
wraps  him  in  smoke  !”  A moment  afterward  he  was  hanged. 

During  the  prevalence  of  this  terror,  all  mutual  confidence  was  suspended, 
and  the  noblest  sentiments  of  human  nature  were  trampled  under-foot. 
The  nearest  blood  relations  became  each  other’s  accusers.  One  man  was 
hanged  on  the  testimony  of  his  wife  and  daughter,  who  impeached  him 
merely  for  the  purpose  of  saving  themselves.  But  this  dreadful  delusion 
was  not  an  unmixed  evil.  “ It  is  likely,”  wrote  a contemporary,  “ that  this 
frenzy  contributed  to  work  off  the  ill  humors  of  the  New  England  people — 
to  dissipate  their  bigotry,  and  to  bring  them  to  a more  free  use  of  their 
reason.” 

The  belief  in  witches  did  not  end  with  the  strange  excitement.  Cotton 
Mather  and  his  clerical  associates  and  others  wrote  in  its  defence.  Mather’s 
account  of  the  delusion  is  unprofitable  reading,  because  it  deals  in  the 
absurd  fancies  of  a man  deluded  by  bigotry,  superstition,  and  childish 
credulity.  This  may  be  seen  in  scores  of  sentences  similar  to  the  following: 

“ It  is  known  that  these  wicked  spectres  [ghosts]  did  proceed  so  far  as  to 
steal  several  quantities  of  money  from  divers  people,  part  of  which  individual 
money  dropt  sometimes  out  of  the  air,  before  sufficient  spectators,  into  the 
hands  of  the  afflicted,  while  the  spectres  were  urging  them  to  subscribe  their 


414 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  III. 


covenant  with  death.  Moreover  poisons,  to  the  standers-by  wholly  invisible, 
were  sometimes  forced  upon  the  afflicted,  which,  when  they  have  with  much 
reluctancy  swallowed,  they  have  swollen  presently,  so  that  the  common 
medicines  for  poison  have  been  found  necessary  to  relieve  them  ; yea,  some- 
times the  spectres,  in  their  troubles,  have  so  dropt  the  poisons  that  the 
standers-by  have  smelt  them  and  viewed  them,  and  beheld  the  pillows  of 
the  miserable  stained  with  them.  Yet  more,  the  miserable  have  complained 


AN  AGED  VICTIM  OF  SUPERSTITION. 


bitterly  of  burning  rags  run  into  their  forcibly  distended  mouths;  and 
though  nobody  could  see  any  such  cloths,  or  indeed  any  fires  in  the 
chambers,  yet  presently  the  scalds  were  seen  plainly  by  everybody  on  the 
mouths  of  the  complainers,  and  not  only  the  smell,  but  the  smoke  of  the 
burning,  filled  the  chambers.” 


Chap.  IX. 


EFFECTS  OF  THE  WITCHCRAFT  DELUSION. 


415 


“ Once  more,  the  miserable  exclaimed  extremely  of  branding-irons,  heat- 
ing at  the  fire  on  the  hearth  to  mark  them  ; now  the  standers-by  could  see 
no  irons,  yet  they  could  see  distinctly  the  print  of  them  in  the  ashes,  and 
smell  them  too,  as  they  were  carried  by  the  not  seen  furies  unto  the  poor 
creatures  for  whom  they  were  intended  ; and  these  poor  creatures  were  there- 
upon so  stigmatized  with  them  that  they  will  bear  the  marks  of  them  to 
their  dying  day.  Nor  are  these  [he  had  related  many  others]  a tenth  part 
of  the  prodigies  that  fell  out  among  the  inhabitants  of  New  England. 

“ Flashy  people  may  burlesque  these  things,  but  when  hundreds  of  the 
most  sober  people,  in  a country  where  they  have  as  much  mother-wit  cer- 
tainly as  the  rest  of  mankind,  know  them  to  be  true,  nothing  but  the  absurd 
and  froward  spirit  of  sadducism  [disbelief  in  spirits]  can  question  them.” 

They  ivcre  burlesqued.  Robert  Calef,  a merchant  of  Boston,  in  a series 
of  letters  which  he  wrote  and  published,  exposed  Mather’s  credulity,  and 
greatly  irritated  the  really  good  man.  Mather  retorted  by  calling  Calef  a 
“weaver  turned  minister.”  Calef  tormented  him  the  more  by  letter  after 
letter,  when  Mather,  wearied  with  the  fight,  called  his  opponent  “ a coal 
from  hell,”  and  prosecuted  him  for  slander.  When  these  letters  were  pub- 
lished in  book  form,  Mather’s  kinsman,  then  president  of  Harvard  College, 
caused  copies  of  the  work  to  be  publicly  burned  on  the  college  grounds. 

This  strange  episode  in  the  history  of  Massachusetts  astonished  the 
civilized  world,  and  made  an  unfavorable  impression  on  the  surrounding 
Indians,  who  despised  a people  that  cherished  a religion  which  sanctioned 
such  cruelties  toward  their  countrymen.  It  gave  a large  advantage  to  the 
P'rench,  whose  Jesuit  missionaries,  then  laboring  among  the  savage  tribes  on 
the  frontier,  contrasted  their  own  mild  and  beneficent  system  of  religion  as 
exhibited  there  with  that  of  the  Puritans,  whose  ministers  had  been  so 
prominent  in  the  fearful  tragedy.  It  had  a serious  effect  upon  the  future 
destiny  of  New  England,  for  the  barbarians  on  the  frontiers  were,  hence- 
forth, strongly  wedded  to  the  fortunes  of  the  French. 

We  paused  to  consider  “ Salem  Witchcraft.”  Let  us  resume  the  narra- 
tive of  general  events. 

“ King  William’s  War  ” continued  in  Europe  and  in  America  until  it  was 
closed  by  a treaty  at  Ryswick  in  1697.  Meanwhile  the  New  England  people 
had  suffered  much  from  the  incursions  of  the  French  and  Indians.  Governor 
Phipps  visited  some  of  the  tribes  with  whom  he  had  made  a treaty  at 
Pemaquid,  on  Bristol  Bay  in  Maine,  and  endeavored  to  secure  their  friend- 
ship and  alliance  with  the  English.  They  were  willing  to  abide  by  the  terms 
of  their  treaty,  but,  more  attached  to  the  French  than  ever,  they  refused  to 
listen  to  any  proposition  for  an  English  alliance,  for  Jesuits  had  told  them 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  111. 


41O 

that  Protestants  were  enemies  to  the  true  religion  of  Christ.  “ The  P'rcnch,” 
they  said,  “ have  driven  witchcraft  from  among  us,  and  we  do  not  care  to 
associate  with  a people  who  cherish  it.”  Phipps  returned  disappointed,  and 
soon  afterward  sailed  to  England,  leaving  the  government  in  the  hands  of 
Stoughton,  his  deputy,  who  exercised  the  authority  of  chief  magistrate  about 
three  years. 

During  Stoughton’s  administration,  internal  feuds  disturbed,  and  border 
wars  distressed  the  province  continually.  The  French  and  Indians  now 
prosecuted  their  peculiar  warfare  with  relentless  vigor.  They  spread  death 
and  desolation  over  the  frontier.  The  P'rench,  by  conquest,  extended  their 
colonial  dominion.  Nova  Scotia  submitted  to  the  rule  of  France  again  ; and 
in  the  summer  of  1696,  a strong  force  of  French  and  Indians,  under  Colonel 
Iberville,  attacked  and  captured  Fort  William  Henry,  at  Pemaquid.  They 
were  accompanied  by  the  Baron  de  Castin,  a colonel  of  the  French  army, 
who  came  to  America  with  his  regiment,  remained,  and  in  1687,  set  up  a 
trading-post  at  the  mouth  of  the  Penobscot  River,  which  spot  yet  bears  his 
name.  There  he  married  a daughter  of  a powerful  Indian  chief,  and  exer- 
cised great  influence  over  the  dusky  tribes.  With  two  hundred  of  such 
followers,  he  joined  Iberville,  assisted  in  the  capture  of  the  fort  and  with  his 
own  hands  helped  to  level  it  with  the  ground.  So  Castin  was  avenged  for 
the  burning  of  his  house  by  the  English. 

This  severe  blow  mortified  and  alarmed  the  New  Englanders  and  excited 
the  victors  to  a more  distressing  warfare.  The  French  and  Indians  pene- 
trated New  England  further  than  they  had  ever  done  before,  destroying 
villages,  and  dispersing  settlements,  and  carrying  away  people  into  captivity. 
Among  the  places  that  felt  the  severest  blasts  of  the  storm  was  Haverhill, 
within  thirty  miles  of  Boston,  which  was  attacked  by  Indians  in  March,  1697, 
when  forty  persons  were  killed  or  made  captives.  Among  the  latter  was  a 
part  of  the  family  of  Thomas  Dustin,  who  was  in  his  field  when  the  savages 
suddenly  appeared  with  horrid  yells  and  gleaming  knives  and  tomahawks. 
Seizing  his  gun  and  mounting  his  horse,  he  hastened  to  his  house  to  bear 
away  his  wife,  eight  young  children  and  a nurse  to  a place  of  safety.  His 
youngest  child  was  only  a week  old.  He  ordered  the  other  seven  to  fly  in  a 
direction  opposite  to  the  approach  of  the  savages,  and  was  lifting  his  wife 
from  the  bed  when  the  Indians  attacked  his  house.  “ Feave  me,”  cried  the 
mother,  “and  fly  to  the  protection  of  the  other  children.”  Seeing  no 
chance  to  save  his  wife,  Dustin  again  mounted  his  horse  and  soon  overtook 
his  precious  flock,  who  were  filled  with  joy  when  they  saw  their  father.  The 
Indians  had  pursued.  Placing  himself  between  the  savages  and  his  precious 
charge,  he  defended  his  children  so  valiantly  as  the  foe  pressed  him  back. 


Chap.  IX. 


THE  STORY  OF  HANNAH  DUSTIN. 


417 


that  the  savages  gave  up  the  pursuit,  and  the  children  were  saved  in  an 
unoccupied  house. 

Meanwhile  the  scenes  at  Mr.  Dustin’s  house  were  most  distressing.  The 
savages  found  Mrs.  Dustin  in  bed,  and  the  nurse  attempting  to  fly  with  the 
infant.  They  ordered  the  feeble  mother  to  rise  instantly,  while  one  of  the 
savages,  taking  the  infant  cut  of  doors,  dashed  out  its  brains  against  an 
apple-tree.  Then  they  plundered  and  set  fire  to  the  house ; and  before  the 
terrified  mother  was  dressed,  they  compelled  her  to  follow  them  in  a hasty 
retreat.  She  was  forced  to  walk  twelve  miles  the  first  day,  in  the  March 


THOMAS  DUSTIN  HASTENING  FROM  THE  FIELD. 


slush  of  snow  and  mud,  without  shoes,  encounter  the  chilling  winds  half- 
clad,  and  lie  upon  the  ground,  when  resting,  with  no  covering  but  the  cold 
gray  sky.  This  was  repeated  day  after  day  until,  by  a circuitous  route,  they 
reached  the  island  in  the  Merrimac  River,  at  the  mouth  of  the  Contotook 
Creek,  six  miles  above  Concord,  New  Hampshire,  now  known  as  Dustin’s 
Island.  There  was  the  home  of  the  chief,  who  claimed  Mrs.  Dustin  and 
her  nurse  as  his  captives.  They  were  lodged  with  his  family,  which  con- 
sisted of  two  men,  three  women,  seven  children  and  a captive  English  lad, 
who  had  been  with  them  more  than  a year.  The  savage  pretended  to  be  a 
Christian.  “ When  I prayed  the  English  way,”  he  said,  “ I thought  it  was 
good  ; but  I think  the  French  way  better.” 

A few  days  after  their  arrival  at  the  island,  the  prisoners  were  told  that 
they  were  soon  to  start  for  a distant  Indian  village,  when  they  would  be 


4i8 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  III. 


compelled  to  “ run  the  gauntlet  ” — that  is,  to  be  stripped  naked  and  run  for 
their  lives  between  two  files  of  Indian  men,  women  and  children,  who  would 
have  the  privilege  of  scoffing  at  them,  beating  them,  and  wounding  them 
with  sharp  hatchets.  The  two  women  resolved  not  to  endure  the  indignity 
and  danger,  preferring  death.  Mrs.  Dustin  planned  a means  for  escape,  and 
her  nurse  and  the  lad  leagued  with  her  in  the  e.xecution  of  it.  The  Indians 
believed  the  lad  to  be  faithful  to  them,  and  did  not  suppose  the  women 
would  have  courage  to  attempt  to  escape.  So  they  did  not  keep  watch. 

On  the  day  before  the  plan  was  to  be  carried  out,  Mrs.  Dustin  ascer- 
tained, through  inquiries  made  by  the  lad,  how  to  kill  a man  instantly,  and 
how  to  take  off  liis  scalp.  “Strike  him  here,”  said  the  Indian  inquired  of, 
placing  his  finger  on  his  temple,  “ and  take  off  his  scalp  so,”  showing  the 
lad  how.  With  this  information,  the  plot  was  ripe.  Before  daylight  the 
next  morning,  when  the  whole  family  were  in  deep  slumber,  Mrs.  Dustin 
arose,  awakened  her  nurse  and  the  lad,  and  with  their  assistance  instantly 
killed  ten  of  the  twelve  sleepers,  she  slaying  her  captor  and  the  lad  killing 
the  man  who  told  him  how  to  do  it.  A squaw  and  a child  fled  to  the  woods ; 
and  the  prisoners,  after  scuttling  all  the  boats  there  but  one,  to  prevent  pur- 
suit, started  in  that  one  down  the  river,  with  provisions  from  the  wigwam. 
They  had  not  proceeded  far  when  Mrs.  Dustin,  reflecting  that  they  had  not 
scalped  their  victims,  and  that  her  friends  might  demand  ocular  proof  of  the 
truth  of  her  thrilling  story,  went  back  with  her  companions,  took  off  the 
scalps,  and  carried  them  away  in  a bag. 

With  strong  hearts  the  three  voyaged  down  the  Merrimac  to  their  homes, 
every  moment  in  peril  from  savages  or  the  elements,  and  were  received  as 
persons  risen  from  the  dead.  Mrs.  Dustin  found  her  husband  and  children 
saved.  Soon  afterward  she  went  to  Boston,  carrying  with  her  a gun  and 
tomahawk  which  she  had  brought  from  the  wigwam,  and  her  ten  trophies ; 
and  the  General  Court  of  Massachusetts  gave  these  brave  sufferers  fifty 
pounds  as  a reward  for  their  heroism.  Ex-Governor  Nicholson,  of  Maryland, 
sent  a metal  tankard  to  Mrs.  Dustin  and  IMrs.  Neff,  as  a token  of  his  admi- 
ration. That  tankard  is  now  (1875)  in  the  possession  of  Mr.  Emery  Coffin, 
of  Newbur>'port,  Massachusetts.  During  the  summer  of  1874,  one  hundred 
and  seventy-seven  years  after  the  event,  citizens  of  Massachusetts  and  New 
Hampshire  erected  on  the  highest  point  of  Dustin’s  Island  an  elegant 
monument  commemorative  of  the  heroic  deed.  It  displays  a figure  of 
Mrs.  Dustin,  holding  in  her  right  hand,  raised  in  the  attitude  of  striking, 
a tomahawk,  and  a bunch  of  scalps  in  the  other.  On  it  are  inscribed 
the  names  of  Hannah  Dustin,  Mary  Neff,  and  Samuel  Leonardson, 
the  English  lad. 


Chap.  IX. 


WAR  AGAINST  FRANCE  DECLARED. 


419 


Other  places  suffered  dreadfully  during  the  summer  of  1697.  Haverhill 
was  again  attacked  and  desolated.  The  treaty  at  Ryswick  (a  small  village 
near  the  Hague,  in  Holland),  soon  afterward  stayed  the  flow  of  blood  in 
Europe  and  America.  There  a peace  was  agreed  upon  between  Louis  the 
Fourteenth  of  France,  and  England,  Spain,  Holland  and  the  German 
Empire,  which  ended  a war  of  more  than  seven  years  duration.  Louis  was 
compelled  to  acknowledge  William  of  Orange  to  be  the  sov^ereign  of  Eng- 
land. That  war  cost  Great  Britain  one  hundred  and  fifty  million  dollars  in 
cash,  besides  a hundred  million  dollars  loaned.  The  latter  laid  the  founda- 
tions of  the  . enormous  national  debt  of  Great  Britain,  now  amounting  to 
about  four  thousand  million  dollars. 

A little  before  the  treaty  at  Ryswick  a Board  of  Trade  and  Plantations 
was  established  in  England,  whose  duty  it  was  to  have  a general  oversight 
of  the  affairs  of  the  American  colonies.  It  was  a permanent  commission, 
the  members  of  which  were  called  “ Lords  of  Trade  and  Plantations.”  It 
consisted  of  seven  members,  with  a president,  and  was  always  a ready  instru- 
ment of  oppression  in  the  hands  of  the  sovereign.  It  became,  as  we  shall 
see,  a powerful  promoter  of  those  discontents  in  the  colonies  which  finally 
broke  out  into  a flame  of  rebellion  in  1775. 

The  lull  in  the  storm  of  war,  caused  by  the  treaty  at  Ryswick,  was  of 
short  duration.  Aspirants  for  power  again  tormented  the  people  with  the 
evils  of  war.  King  James  the  Second  died  in  France  in  September,  1701. 
He  had  been  shielded  by  Louis  after  his  flight  from  his  throne  to  France 
and  now  the  French  monarch  acknowledged  James’s  son,  James  Francis 
Edward  (who  is  known  in  history  as  The  Pretender),  to  be  the  lawful  king  of 
England.  This  act  offended  the  English  because  the  crown  had  been 
settled  upon  Anne,  James’s  second  and  Protestant  daughter.  Louis  like- 
wise offended  the  English  by  placing  his  grandson,  Philip  of  Anjou,  on  the 
throne  of  Spain,  so  increasing  French  influence  among  the  dynasties  of 
Europe.  William  was  enraged,  and  was  preparing  for  war,  when  a fall  from 
his  horse,  while  hunting,  caused  his  death.  He  was  succeeded  by  Anne, 
and  the  causes  already  mentioned,  with  others  of  less  importance,  impelled 
her  to  declare  war  against  France  after  her  accession  to  the  throne.  Hos- 
tilities began  in  1702,  and,  as  before,  the  colonies  of  the  two  governments 
in  America  became  involved  in  the  conflict.  In  the  war  that  ensued,  and 
which  lasted  almost  a dozen  years,  the  New  Englanders  again  suffered  dread- 
fully from  incursions  of  the  French  and  Indians.  That  contest  is  known  in 
our  annals  as  Queen  Anne’s  War. 

It  may  be  observed  that  at  this  opening  of  a new  era  in  the  history  of 
New  England,  when  the  liberal  and  enlightened  reign  of  William  was  making 


420 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  111. 


a deep  impression  upon  England  and  her  American  colonies,  the  people  of 
our  present  Eastern  States  were  more  united,  more  enlightened,  and  less 
bigoted  than  they  had  ever  been  before.  The  Earl  of  Bellamont,  whom  we 
have  mentioned  as  governor  of  New  York,  was  made  governor  of  Ma.ssa- 
chusetts  and  New  Hampshire  also.  When  he  visited  Boston  in  1699,  he 
found  controversies  allayed,  passions  cooled,  and  the  prevalence  of  a general 
disposition  to  promote  harmony  and  good-fellowship.  Wisdom  and  mode- 
ration had  taken  the  places  of  folly  and  vehemence  in  thought  and  action  ; 
and  there  was  a happy  toleration  abroad.  The  printing-press  was  doing  its 
beneficent  work  efficiently  in  scattering  the  seeds  of  knowledge,  thereby 
creating  a sentiment  of  brotherhood  among  separated  religious  communities. 
From  the  beginning,  the  New  Englanders  were  distinguished  for  their  appe- 
tite for  knowledge  and  the  ready  reception,  when  untrammelcd  by  arbitrary 
restraints,  of  truths  of  every  kind.  This  disposition  formed  the  springs  of 
that  love  for  liberty  which  has  always  distinguished  the  inhabitants  of  New 
England. 


> 


CHAPTER  X. 


BELLAMONT  GOVERNOR  OF  MASSACHUSETTS — FRENCH  CLAIMS  IN  NEW  ENGLAND — QUEEN  ANNE 
AND  OTHERS  DECLARE  WAR  AGAINST  FRANCE — STRUGGLE  WITH  THE  FRENCH  AND  INDIANS — 
INFLUENCE  OF  THE  JESUITS— DEATH  OF  FATHER  RALE — DESTRUCTION  OF  DEERFIELD — FATE 
OF  THE  WILLIAMS  FAMILY — THE  VILLAGE  BELL — ACADIE  INVADED  — PROGRESS  OF  FRENCH 
DOMINION — INDIAN  “KINGS”  IN  ENGLAND — EXPEDITION  AGAINST  CANADA — A LONG  PEACE — 
CAPTURE  OF  LOUISBURG — FRENCH  ATTEMPT  TO  RETAKE  IT — TREATY  OF  AIX-LA-CHAPELLE. 

WE  have  observed  that  the  Earl  of  Bellamont  found  public  affairs 
in  pleasant  shape  in  Massachusetts,  on  his  arrival  in  Boston  in 
1699.  He  was  the  only  English-born  nobleman  who  ever  gov- 
erned a New  England  province.  His  conduct  won  for  him  the  profound 
respect  of  the  rigid  Puritan  republicans,  for  he  fairly  estimated  the  mutual 
dependence  of  ruler  and  people,  and  acted  accordingly.  One  day  at  his 
table,  at  which  sat  many  representatives  of  the  people  of  the  commonwealth, 
he  said  to  his  wife : “ Dame,  we  should  treat  these  gentlemen  well : they 
give  us  our  bread.” 

Nothing  disturbed  the  serenity  of  Bellamont’s  administration  excepting 
the  encroachments  of  the  French,  who  had  outgeneraled  the  English  in 
securing  the  control  of  the  mouth  of  the  Mississippi  River,  and  were  then 
preparing  to  extend  their  territorial  jurisdiction  in  the  East  as  far  westward 
as  the  Kennebec  River. 

According  to  the  interpretation  of  the  English  court,  the  St.  Croix 
River,  now  the  eastern  boundary  of  the  United  States,  was  to  be  the  western 
boundary  of  the  French  dominion  in  that  quarter.  The  French  king  chose 
to  interpret  it  otherwise;  and  his  representatives  in  Nova  Scotia  gave  notice 
to  the  authorities  of  Massachusetts  that  it  was  their  intention  to  assert 
jurisdiction  as  far  westward  as  the  Kennebec.  Bellamont  informed  the 
British  ministry  of  the  threatened  invasion,  but  his  communication  received 
little  notice.  No  doubt  the  invasion  would  have  been  successfully  carried 
out  had  not  the  war  between  England  and  France  began  soon  afterward. 

In  May,  1702,  Queen  Anne  and  her  allies  the  Emperor  of  Germany  and 
the  States-General  of  Holland  declared  war  against  France  and  Spain. 
When  hostilities  began  in  Europe,  they  were  the  signal  for  the  English 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  III. 


422 

colonists  in  America  to  prepare  for  another  fierce  struggle  with  the  French 
and  Indians.  Governor  Dudley  and  some  magistrates  of  Massachusetts 
held  a conference  with  the  Eastern  Indians  at  Casco,  in  June,  1703.  The 
savages,  with  well-feigned  friendship,  readily  renewed  former  treaties.  They 
declared  that  the  French  had  asked  them  to  take  up  the  hatchet  against  the 
English,  but  they  had  refused  because  the  friendship  for  the  people  of  Mas- 
sachusetts was  “ as  firm  as  the  mountains,  and  as  enduring  as  the  sun  and 
moon.” 

Some  believed  in  the  sincerity  of  the  Indians.  Wise  men  shook  their 
heads  in  doubt,  and  others  declared  their  belief  that  the  savages,  under  the 
tutelage  of  the  French,  were  playing  a treacherous  part.  Circumstances 
soon  settled  the  question.  Only  a few  weeks  after  the  conference  these 
same  Indians  fell,  with  remorseless  fury,  upon  the  frontier  settlers  of  iMassa- 
chusetts  and  New  Hampshire.  The  solemn  treaties  were  scattered  to  the 
winds.  The  tribes  from  the  Merrimac  to  the  Penobscot  desolated  the 
border  settlements,  murdering  the  innocent,  plundering  the  thrifty,  and 
laying  in  ashes  cabins,  mansions,  and  villages.  Not  even  the  benefactors  of 
the  Indians,  the  Friends  or  Quakers,  were  spared.  They  respected  “ neither 
the  milk-white  brows  of  the  grave  ancient,”  nor  “ the  mournful  cries  of 
tender  infants.” 

This  treachery  greatly  exasperated  the  English  against  the  French  Jesuits, 
to  whose  counsels  they  professed  to  trace  the  cause  of  the  dire  calamity. 
Already  this  Order  had  incurred  the  intense  hatred  of  the  New  Englanders, 
because  many  circumstances  pointed  to  Jesuit  influence  inciting  the  Indians 
to  make  war  on  the  English.  The  revelation  of  Bomaseen,  a sachem  who 
visited  Boston,  intensified  that  hatred.  He  declared  that  the  Jesuits  had 
told  the  Indians  that  Jesus  Christ  was  a Frenchman;  that  his  mother, 
the  Virgin  Mary,  was  a French  woman  ; that  the  English  had  murdered  him  ; 
that  he  had  gone  up  to  heaven  to  plead  for  mankind,  and  that  he  who  would 
receive  his  favor  must  espouse  the  cause  of  his  countrymen,  the  French,  in 
the  pending  quarrel.  Bomaseen  was  a crafty  Indian,  and  may  have  invented 
this  story;  but  it  was  believed  by  the  colonists.  The  Legislatures  of  both 
New  York  and  Massachusetts  had  already  passed  laws  for  the  expulsion  of 
the  Jesuits  from  their  respective  provinces;  but  nothing  could  diminish  their 
secret  influence  over  the  Indians.  Warriors  from  Canada  joined  those  south 
of  the  St.  Lawrence,  and  in  their  murderous  forays  they  were  often  accom- 
panied by  French  troops  and  ecclesiastics. 

The  white  men  and  Indians  all  confessed  their  sins  to  the  priests  and 
received  pardon  for  them,  before  engaging  in  their  bloody  work.  A day 
was  appointed  for  such  confession  and  pardon.  “ I exhorted  them,”  [the 


Chap.  X. 


THE  WORK  OF  ABSOLVED  INDIANS. 


423 


Indians],  .says  Father  Rale,  of  Norridgewock,  “ to  maintain  the  same  interest 
in  religion  as  if  they  were  at  home  ; to  observe  carefully  the  laws  of  war ; 
to  practice  no  cruelty ; to  kill  no  one  except  in  the  heat  of  battle ; and  to 
treat  their  prisoners  humanely.”  What  a ghastly  commentary  on  their 
merciful  instructions  were  the  savage  cruelties  of  these  absolved  men,  as 
they  swept  along  the  frontier  from  Casco  to  Wells  immediately  after  leaving 
the  presence  of  the  priest,  staining  the  fields  with  the  blood  of  the  innocent, 
and  lighting  up  the  heavens  at  night  with  the  flames  of  burning  dwellings ! 
Twenty  years  afterward.  Rale  fell  a victim  to  the  fiery  indignation  of  the 
English  against  him  and  his  fellow  Jesuits  for  their  alleged  complicity  in  the 
atrocious  acts  of  the  Indians  for  more  than  a quarter  of  a century.  Nor- 


ridgewock, where  he  had  labored  as  a missionary’  more  than  thirty  years, 
was  attacked  by  the  English  in  1723.  Rale  was  shot  dead,  it  is  said,  at  the 
foot  of  a cross,  where  his  flock,  with  wild  cries,  bewailed  his  death.  On  that 
spot,  in  1833,  a monument  was  erected  to  his  memory.  With  Rale,  Boma- 
seen  and  some  of  his  kindred  also  fell. 

During  the  winter  of  1703-4,  the  people  along  the  New  England  frontier 
lived  in  perpetual  dread  of  the  foe.  At  length,  late  in  February,  a party  of 
French  and  Indians,  who  had  traveled  with  snow-shoes  all  the  way  from 
Canada,  approached  the  pretty  village  of  Deerfield  on  the  Connecticut 
River,  in  Massachusetts.  The  snow  lay  four  feet  deep  in  that  region,  and 
was  covered  with  a crust  that  bore  the  invaders.  The  drifts  around  the 
28 


424 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  111. 


town  were  almost  as  high  as  its  encircling  palisades.  Over  these  Major 
Hertel  de  Rouville,  the  commander  of  the  motley  party,  and  his  followers, 
easily  crept  into  the  village  while  the  inhabitants  were  slumbering  before  the 
dawn  of  the  first  day  of  March.  The  first  intimation  the  villagers  had  of 
danger  was  the  bursting  open  of  their  doors  and  the  sound  of  the  horrid 
war-whoop  of  the  savages.  The  people  were  dragged  from  their  beds  and 
murdered  or  carried  into  captivity.  The  village  was  set  on  fire,  and  every 
building  excepting  the  chapel  and  one  dwelling-house  was  laid  in  ashes. 
Forty  of  the  inhabitants  were  killed,  and  one  hundred  and  twelve  were 
borne  to  the  wilderness  an  hour  after  sunrise. 

Among  the  victims  was  the  Rev.  John  Williams,  the  village  pastor,  and 
his  family.  Two  of  his  children  and  a black  servant  were  murdered  at  his 
door.  With  his  wife  and  five  children  he  began  the  toilsome  journey.  Mrs. 
Williams  fainted  with  fatigue  on  the  second  day.  The  tomahawk  of  an 
Indian  cleft  her  skull,  and  so  they  were  relieved  of  the  burden.  Her  hus- 
band and  children  were  taken  to  Canada,  and  after  a captivity  among  the 
Caughnawagas,  near  Montreal,  for  nearly  two  years,  they  w^ere  ransomed 
and  returned  home.  Only  a daughter,  ten  years  old,  was  kept.  The  Indians 
would  not  part  with  her.  She  grew  up  to  womanhood  in  Indian  habits  and 
tastes,  became  a Roman  Catholic,  married  a young  Mohawk  brave  and  bore 
children  ; and  when  she  visited  her  relations  in  Deerfield  in  after  years,  she 
could  not  be  induced  to  abandon  her  Indian  mode  of  life,  nor  leave  the 
church  to  which  she  was  attached. 

The  chief  object  of  this  expedition  was  to  procure  the  little  bell  in  the 
meeting-house  in  Deerfield.  It  had  been  bought  in  France  for  the  church 
of  St.  Louis,  at  Caughnawaga.  The  vessel  that  bore  it  to  America  was 
captured  by  a New  England  privateer  and  taken  into  Boston.  The  bell  was 
purchased  by  the  congregation  at  Deerfield,  and  hung  in  the  belfry  of  the 
meeting-house.  The  invaders  carried  it  away,  under  the  charge  of  Father 
Nicolas,  of  the  church  at  Caughnawaga,  who  accompanied  the  expedition. 
It  was  borne  in  triumph  to  its  original  destination,  and  it  now  summons  the 
people  to  worship  from  the  belfry  of  the  church  of  St.  Louis  at  Caughna- 
waga. 

For  years  these  tales  of  horror  were  the  true  narratives  of  the  experience 
of  New  Englanders  on  the  border.  Remote  settlements  were  abandoned. 
The  tillers  of  the  soil  gathered  in  palisaded  villages  and  labored  in  the  fields 
in  groups,  and  well-armed.  There  was  no  semblance  of  civilized  warfare  in 
the  methods  of  the  French  and  Indians,  and  their  cruelties  inspired  good 
men  everywhere  with  horror.  “ I hold  it  to  be  my  duty  towards  God  and 
my  neighbor,”  w-rote  the  good  Peter  Schuyler,  Mayor  of  Albany,  to  Vau- 


Chap.  X. 


AGGRESSIVE  MOVEMENTS  PROPOSED. 


425 


dreuil,  the  French  governor  of  Canada,  “ to  prevent,  if  possible,  these  bar- 
barous and  heathen  cruelties.  My  heart  swells  with  indignation  when  I 
think  that  a war  between  Christian  princes,  bound  to  the  exactest  laws  of 
honor  and  generosity,  which  their  noble  ancestors  have  illustrated  by  bril- 
liant examples,  is  degenerated  into  savage  and  boundless  butchery.  These 
are  not  the  methods  for  terminating  the  war.  Would  that  all  the  world 
thought  with  me  on  this  subject.” 

Such  protests  were  uttered  in  vain.  The  savages  were  unrestrained  by 
their  Christian  allies.  The  power  of  the  church  and  state  encouraged  them 


THE  CAPTIVE  WILLIAMS  FAMILY. 


in  their  bloody  deeds.  At  length  the  New  Englanders  determined  to  make 
aggressive  movements.  In  1707,  Massachusetts,  New  Ham.pshire  and  Rhode 
Island,  resolved  to  carry  war  into  the  French  domain  on  the  East.  Early 
in  June  a thousand  men  under  Colonel  Marsh  sailed  for  Nantucket,  under 
convoy  of  a British  war-ship,  to  attempt  the  conquest  of  Acadie.  The 
French  at  Port  Royal  were  prepared  for  them,  and  the  expedition  was  a 
failure. 

In  1710,  another  expedition,  fitted  out  at  the  joint  expense  of  the  New 
England  colonies  and  New  York  and  New  Jersey,  sailed  from  Boston,  with 


426 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book.  III. 


a fleet  from  England  under  the  command  of  Colonel  Nicholson.  There 
were  thirty-six  vessels  in  all.  They  sailed  in  September,  and  six  days  after- 
ward the  fleet  was  anchored  before  the  fort  at  Port  Royal.  The  place  was 
surrendered  to  the  English  on  the  thirteenth  of  October,  and  the  name  and 
fortress  of  Port  Royal  were  changed  to  Annapolis,  in  honor  of  Queen  Anne. 
Acadia  was  annexed  to  the  realm  of  Great  Britain,  under  the  title  of  Nova 
Scotia  or  New  Scotland.  The  British  flag  has  waved  perpetually  over  that 
fortress  from  that  day  to  this. 

Nicholson  carried  the  good  news  to  England,  and  urged  the  conquest  of 
Canada.  The  people  of  the  province  of  New  York,  though  shielded  from 
invasion  by  the  French  and  Indians  from  Canada  by  the  neutral  Five 
Nations  who  stood  an  impassable  barrier,  favored  the  project,  because  they 
looked  with  concern  upon  the  progress  of  French  dominion  in  the  West,  its 
arms  reaching  from  the  great  lakes  on  the  North  toward  others  extending 
from  the  Gulf  of  Mexico  on  the  South.  The  French  then  claimed  all  the 
region  in  the  Valley  of  the  Mississippi  to  “the  South  Sea;”  named  the 
country  Louisiana  in  honor  of  their  king,  and  were  preparing  to  establish  a 
great  empire  there. 

The  Legislature  of  New  York  sent  a memorial  to  the  queen  on  the 
subject  of  French  encroachments,  by  the  hand  of  Colonel  Schuyler,  just 
mentioned,  who  was  accompanied  to  England  by  sachems  of  the  Five 
Nations,  as  representatives  of  the  Iroquois  Confederacy. 

In  London  these  dusky  “ kings,”  as  they  were  called,  drew  crowds  of 
wondering  gazers.  Multitudes  followed  the  sachems  wherever  they  went, 
and  the  print-shops  soon  exhibited  engravings  of  their  portraits.  They  felt 
awkward  in  English  small-clothes  of  black,  and  scarlet  mantles  trimmed  with 
gold  lace,  in  which  they  were  clad,  and  preferred  the  scanty  wardrobe  of 
their  forest  homes.  They  were  entertained  at  sumptuous  banquets  by  the 
principal  nobility  of  the  realm,  and  shown  the  glory  of  the  kingdom.  They 
saw  reviews  of  troops,  and  went  on  board  some  of  the  great  ships  of  the 
Royal  Navy ; and  at  the  London  theatre  they  were  amused  by  gorgeous 
displays.  In  the  state  carriage  drawn  by  six  horses,  they  were  conveyed  to 
the  court  and  held  an  audience  with  the  queen  ; and  before  their  departure, 
they  addressed  to  her  Majesty,  and  to  the  Lords  of  the  Privy  Council, 
letters  bearing  their  signatures  in  the  form  of  rude  pictures  of  the  Wolf,  the 
Bear,  and  the  Tortoise — their  respective  totems  or  tribal  arms — in  which  they 
promised  perpetual  friendship  and  alliance  with  the  English,  and  confirmed 
them  by  presenting  belts  of  wampum,  their  tokens  of  fidelity.  With 
Schuyler,  they  returned  to  America  in  the  ship  Dragon,  with  Colonel 
Nicholson,  and  arrived  in  Boston  early  in  the  summer  of  1711.  They  had 


Chap.  X. 


EXPEDITIONS  AGAINST  CANADA. 


427 


seen  evidences  of  the  amazing  strength,  power  and  glory  of  Great  Britain, 
which  made  a deep  and  abiding  impression  upon  the  ambassadors  and  their 
countrymen.  They  were  ready  to  aid  the  English  in  the  conquest  of  Canada. 

An  expedition  for  that  conquest  was  planned  by  Henry  St.  John,  after- 
ward Lord  Bolingbroke,  the  friend  of  Pope  and  Swift,  the  brilliant  orator 
and  conversationalist,  and  the  popular  and  unscrupulous  Secretary  of  War  of 
Queen  Anne.  Fifteen  ships-of-war,  forty  transports  and  six  store-ships  were 
placed  under  the  command  of  Admiral  Sir  Hovenden  Walker,  and  with 
marines  and  battalions  of  veteran  soldiers,  then  sailed  for  America  and 
arrived  at  Boston  in  June,  1711.  New  England  colonies  promptly  raised  a 
provincial  force,  and  the  ships  sailed  for  Quebec  on  the  lOth  of  August, 
bearing  about  seven  thousand  troops.  At  the  same  time  other  colonies  had 
formed  a provincial  army  for  the  capture  of  Montreal  and  the  holding  of  the 
region  of  the  upper  St.  Lawrence.  These  were  under  the  command  of 
Nicholson,  who  held  a general’s  commission  and  marched  from  Albany,  on 
the  Hudson,  on  the  same  day  when  the  fleet  left  Boston.  They  were  four 
thousand  in  number,  and  were  chiefly  furnished  by  New  York  and  Connec- 
ticut. Six  hundred  of  them  were  warriors  of  the  Five  Nations. 

News  of  these  movements  soon  reached  Governor  Vaudreuil  at  Montreal. 
He  sent  out  Jesuit  missionaries  and  other  agents  to  secure  Indian  allies,  and 
hastened  to  Quebec  to  prepare  for  the  invaders.  The  fortifications  were 
strengthened ; and  so  enthusiastic  were  the  inhabitants  in  the  cause  of 
defensive  war,  that  women  worked  on  the  forts.  But  there  was  no  occasion 
to  fight  for  Quebec,  for  the  British  armament  on  the  sea  did  not  get  into  the 
St.  Lawrence.  When  the  ships  arrived  at  its  mouth  after  loitering  by  the 
way,  they  were  overtaken  by  a storm  of  wind  and  a thick  fog.  It  was  a 
perilous  place  among  rocks  and  shoals.  Haughtily  rejecting  the  advice  of 
the  New  England  pilots,  the  admiral  listened  to  that  of  French  pilots,  who 
had  an  interest  in  misleading  him.  His  fleet  was  soon  driving  on  the  shore, 
on  the  night  of  the  2d  of  September.  Just  as  he  was  going  to  bed  the 
captain  of  his  vessel  came  down  to  him  and  said,  “ Land  is  in  sight ; we  are 
in  great  danger.”  Walker  did  not  believe  him.  Presently  a provincial 
captain  rushed  down  and  exclaimed:  “For  the  Lord’s  sake  come  on  deck, 
or  we  shall  be  lost ; I see  the  breakers  all  around  us.”  Leisurely  putting  on 
his  gown  and  slippers,  the  admiral  ascended  to  the  deck  and  saw  the  immi- 
nent peril.  His  orders  for  salvation,  immediately  given,  were  too  late.  The 
vessels  were  driven  on  the  iron-bound  shore,  and  eight  of  them  were  lost. 
Almost  a thousand  men  perished  in  the  sea. 

A few  days  afterward,  a council  of  war  concluded  that  it  would  be  wise 
to  abandon  the  expedition.  The  disheartened  admiral  returned  to  England 


428 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  IIL 


with  his  ships,  while  the  provincial  troops  were  sent  to  Boston.  Hearing  of 
the  calamity  and  the  result,  Nicholson  unwillingly  retraced  his  steps  to 
Albany,  and  left  Montreal  unmolested.  Walker  actually  claimed  credit  for 
himself  in  retreating  after  falsely  charging  the  disaster  to  the  incompetence 
of  the  New  England  pilots.  “ Had  we  arrived  safe  at  Quebec,  ten  or  twelve 
thousand  men,”  he  wrote,  “ must  have  been  left  to  perish  of  cold  and  hunger; 
by  the  loss  of  a part.  Providence  saved  all  the  rest.”  The  admiral  was  disap- 
pointed in  not  receiving  public  honors  for  his  exploits  in  assisting  Providence. 

In  the  spring  of  1713,  the  war  was 
ended  by  a treaty  concluded  at  Utrecht, 
by  which  England  obtained  the  privilege 
of  being  the  chief  trader  of  the  world  in 
African  slaves,  and  received  large  acces- 
sions of  territory  from  France.  The  east- 
ern Indians,  wearied  with  the  war,  sent 
delegates  to  Boston  to  sue  for  peace ; and 
at  Portsmouth,  the  governor  of  Massachu- 
setts and  New  Hampshire  made  a solemn 
treaty  of  amity  with  the  chiefs  of  those 
tribes  on  the  24th  of  July. 

A long  peace  now  ensued.  For  thirty 
years  the  colonists  of  New  England  en- 
joyed comparative  repose.  It  was  broken 
only  by  discontented  Indians  in  the  East 
■ — the  powerful  Abenakes.  They  disputed 
the  claims  of  Massachusetts  to  their  ter- 
ritory, which  the  French  had  surrendered. 
Their  chief  said,  “ I have  my  land  where 
the  Great  Spirit  has  placed  me  ; and  while 
there  remains  one  child  of  my  tribe,  I will 
fight  to  preserve  it.”  Finally,  the  English 
seized  the  young  Baron  de  Castin,  the  son 
of  an  Indian  woman.  Smarting  under  this  indignity,  the  Indians  resolved 
to  retaliate.  The  torch  was  again  lighted,  and  Brunswick  was  laid  in  ashes. 
The  Jesuit  missionary.  Rale,  clearly  perceiving  their  comparative  weakness, 
told  them  plainly  that  their  country  was  lost.  The  exasperated  New  Eng- 
landers overran  portions  of  it  with  small  military  expeditions,  striking  blows 
here  and  there.  It  was  in  one  of  these  forays  upon  Norridgewock  that  Rale 
was  killed.  He  was  the  last  Jesuit  missionary  in  New  England,  and  with 
him  perished  P'rench  influence  over  the  Indian  tribes  in  the  East. 


THE  SLAIN  MISSIONARY. 


Chap.  X. 


CAPTURE  OF  LOUISBURG  TO  BE  ATTEMPTED. 


429 


For  several  years  after  the  close  of  these  contests  with  the  Indians,  the 
history  of  Massachusetts  consists  chiefly  of  the  record  of  warm  political 
disputes  by  which  the  growth  of  republican  principles  was  greatly  .stimulated. 
Controversies,  sometimes  violent  and  sometimes  conciliatory,  were  carried 
on  between  the  governors  and  the  representatives  of  the  people,  the  former 
contending  for  prerogatives  and  salaries  which  the  latter  deemed  inadmis- 
sible. These  disputes  were  suddenly  arrested  when,  late  in  the  spring  of 
1744,  news  came  that  France  had  declared  war  against  Great  Britain.  The 
colonists  knew  that  the  evident  result  would  be  hostilities  between  their 
respective  colonies  in  America,  and  they  prepared  for  the  conflict  which  is 
known  in  our  history  as  “ King  George’s  War.”  It  was  so  called  because 
King  George  the  Second  was  then  on  the  throne  of  England,  and  had 
espoused  the  cause  of  the  Empress  of  Austria,  the  celebrated  Maria  Theresa, 
who  fought  for  the  crown  of  Austria  against  the  Elector  of  Bavaria.  The 
king  of  France  espoused  the  cause  of  his  opponent,  and  this  led  to  war.  In 
Europe  it  was  known  as  “ The  War  of  the  Austrian  Succession.” 

This  war  was  not  marked  by  any  very  stirring  events  in  America,  except- 
ing some  military  and  naval  operations  in  the  East.  Before  war  was 
declared,  some  French  soldiers  from  the  island  of  Cape  Breton,  surprised, 
captured  and  carried  to  Louisburg  a small  English  garrison  at  Canseau 
Then  some  Indians  attacked  the  dilapidated  fort  at  Annapolis,  but  were 
repulsed.  These  things  compelled  the  English  colonists  to  contemplate 
retaliation,  and  they  resolved  to  attempt  to  capture  the  fortress  at  Louisburg, 
and  so  secure  an  important  advantage.  The  men  taken  from  Canseau  had 
been  sent  to  Boston  on  parole,  and  gave  a minute  account  of  that  fortress. 
It  had  been  built  by  the  French  after  the  treaty  of  Utrecht  at  a cost  of  five 
and  a half  million  dollars,  and  because  of  its  great  strength  it  was  called 
“ The  Gibraltar  of  America.” 

At  that  time,  William  Shirley,  a good  soldier  and  energetic  statesman, 
was  governor  of  Massachusetts.  He  asked  England  for  aid  in  the  expedition 
against  Louisburg.  He  appealed  to  the  other  colonies.  The  Legislature  of 
Massachusetts  made  provision  for  the  expedition.  New  York  sent  some 
artillery,  and  Pennsylvania  some  food.  The  New  England  colonies  raised 
men,  Massachusetts  alone  furnishing  more  than  three  thousand.  So  the 
common  danger  was  extending  the  idea  of  a necessity  for  a political  union 
of  the  English-American  colonies  long  before  it  assumed  a practical  shape  in 
1754,  and  especially  in  1774. 

The  colonists  had  reason  to  expect  the  co-operation  of  a British  fleet 
then  in  the  West  Indies,  under  Admiral  Sir  Peter  Warren.  They  waited 
some  time  for  its  appearance,  but  in  vain.  P^inally,  at  the  beginning  of 


430 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  111. 


April,  1745,  New  England  troops  sailed  from  Boston  for  Canseau,  under  the 
general  command  of  William  Pepperell,  a wealthy  merchant  of  Maine,  who 
was  afterward  made  a baronet  for  his  distinguished  services.  The  ice  was 
yet  floating  around  Cape  Breton  in  such  huge  masses  that  ships  could  not 
enter  the  harbor  of  Louisburg,  and  the  expedition  was  detained  at  Canseau 
almost  a month,  when  it  was  unexpectedly  joined  by  five  war-ships  and  soon 
afterward  by  others  from  England,  under  Admiral  Warren.  That  officer 
had  received  instructions  from  home  to  give  to  Massachusetts  all  the  aid 
in  his  power.  On  the  day  after  Warren  appeared,  some  vessels  arrived  from 
Connecticut  with  a considerable  land  force  from  that  colony. 

The  New  England  vessels  of  all  sorts  now  at  Canseau  numbered  one 
hundred.  Governor  Shirley  had  instructed  Pepperell  to  have  all  of  these 
vessels  arrive  near  Louisburg  at  the  same  hour,  in  the  night ; and  no  matter 
what  might  then  be  the  condition  of  the  surf,  to  land  all  the  troops  on  the 
rocky  shore  before  daylight,  march  at  once  through  thickets  and  over 
morasses  to  the  city  and  beyond  it,  and  to  take  the  fortress  and  town  by 
surprise.  Of  course  a strict  compliance  with  these  orders  was  impossible, 
but  it  was  undertaken.  The  vessels  all  left  Canseau,  bearing  about  four 
thousand  troops,  and  early  in  the  morning  of  the  30th  of  April  appeared  in 
Gabarus  Bay,  eastward  of  Louisburg.  The  troops  were  disembarked  on  the 
same  day,  and  most  of  the  artillery,  ammunition,  and  provisions  were  landed. 
The  alarm  bells  of  the  city  were  rung,  and  cannon  from  the  fortress  were 
fired  to  warn  the  suburban  inhabitants  of  danger. 

The  assailants  had  heavy  work  before  them,  with  seemingly  inadequate 
means  for  its  execution.  The  walls  of  the  fortress  were  forty  feet  thick  at 
the  bottom,  of  solid  masonry,  and  from  twenty  to  thirty  feet  in  height. 
Around  them  was  a ditch,  filled  with  water,  eighty  feet  wide.  More  than 
one  hundred  heavy  cannon,  and  nearly  eighty  swivels  and  mortars,  com- 
posed the  armament  of  the  fort.  All  the  walls  were  swept  by  artillery  from 
the  bastions,  and  a garrison  of  sixteen  hundred  men  defended  these  strong 
works.  There  were  also  batteries  with  many  cannon  outside  the  fort  to 
defend  the  approaches  to  it.  It  seemed  possible  for  two  hundred  men  to 
defend  it  against  five  thousand.  The  heavy  artillery  of  the  assailants  con- 
sisted of  only  eighteen  cannon  and  three  mortars. 

The  P'rench  sent  out  a force  to  oppose  the  landing,  but  they  were  soon 
put  to  flight.  On  the  following  morning,  Lieutenant-Colonel  Vaughan,  of 
New  Hampshire,  a resolute  volunteer,  full  of  zeal  and  courage,  conducted  a 
small  advance  column  through  the  woods  within  sight  of  Louisburg,  and 
with  three  cheers  greeted  the  first  sight  of  the  fortress.  The  same  evening 
he  marched  to  a part  of  the  harbor  where  there  were  large  warehouses  con- 


Chap.  X. 


SPIRIT  OF  THE  NEW  ENGLANDERS. 


431 


taining  a vast  amount  of  naval  stores,  and  set  them  on  fire.  The  smoke, 
driven  by  a strong  wind  into  the  grand  battery  situated  near,  so  terrified  its 
garrison  that  they  spiked  their  guns  and  fled  into  the  city.  Vaughan  took 
possession  of  the  battery,  and  held  it  until  he  was  reinforced,  in  spite  of  a 
resolute  effort  of  a French  force  to  retake  it.  The  guns  of  the  battery  were 
unspiked  by  Major  Seth  Pomeroy,  a Massachusetts  blacksmith,  who  after- 
ward became  a useful  officer  in  the  French  and  Indian  war.  “ It  looks  as  if 
our  campaign  would  last  long,”  th£  gallant  Pomeroy  wrote  to  his  wife ; “ but 
I am  willing  to  stay  till  God’s  time  comes  to  deliver  the  city  into  our  hands.” 
“ Suffer  no  anxious  thought  to  rest  on  your  mind  about  me,”  answered  that 
patriotic  New  England  woman.  “The  whole  town  is  much  engaged  with 
concern  for  the  expedition,  how  Providence  will  order  the  affair,  for  which 
religious  meetings  every  week  are  maintained.  I leave  you  in  the  hand  of 


NEW  ENGLANDERS  MARCHING  FOR  LOUISBURG. 


God.”  Such  was  the  spirit  of  the  descendants  of  the  Puritans.  The  New 
Hampshire  troops  bore  on  their  banners  the  motto  given  them  by  the 
eminent  Whitefield — Nil  desperandiwi  Christo  subducc" — Nothing  is  to  be 
despaired  of  with  Christ  for  the  leader.  It  inspired  many  of  them  with  the 
zeal  of  crusaders,  for  they  regarded  it  as  an  efficacious  benediction  by  a 
highly  gifted  and  holy  man  ; a true  servant  of  heaven. 

The  English  troops  encamped  in  a semicircle  around  Louisburg.  The 
heavy  cannon  and  mortars,  under  the  charge  of  Captain  Richard  Gridley 
(who  was  conspicuous  in  the  siege  of  Boston  thirty  years  afterward,  as  an 
engineer),  were  dragged  on  sledges  across  morasses ; trenches  were  dug  by 
the  zealous  soldiers ; batteries  were  erected,  and  on  the  last  day  of  May  a 
regular  siege  was  commenced.  Meanwhile  Warren  had  captured  a French 


432 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  III. 


seventy-four  gun  ship,  with  five  hundred  men  and  a large  quantity  of  mili- 
tary stores. 

Finally,  a combined  attack  of  the  fleet  and  army  was  made,  and  on  the 
17th  of  June,  the  city,  the  fort  and  garrison,  and  the  batteries,  were  sur- 
rendered to  the  English,  together  with  the  Island  of  Cape  Breton.  The 
value  of  the  stores  and  prizes  then  captured  was  a little  less  than  five  million 
dollars.  On  the  day  of  surrender  New  England  ministers  preached  in  the 
chapel  of  the  fortress  ; and  in  view  of  the  amazing  strength  of  the  place,  one 
of  them  said  from  the  pulpit : “ God  has  gone  out  of  the  way  of  his  common 
providence,  in  a remarkable  and  almost  miraculous  manner,  to  incline 
the  hearts  of  the  French  to  give  up,  and  deliver  this  strong  city  into  our 
hands.” 

The  pride  of  France  was  deeply  mortified  by  the  results  of  this  daring 
and  successful  expedition.  Her  rulers  determined  to  recover  the  lost  city 
and  fortress,  and  to  desolate  the  colonies  of  the  English  in  America.  For 
that  purpose  a powerful  fleet  was  sent  to  Cape  Breton,  under  the  command 
of  the  Duke  d’Anville.  His  vessels  were  dispersed,  and  several  of  them 
were  wrecked  by  violent  storms ; and  disease  wasted  hundreds  of  his  men. 
He  was  compelled  to  abandon  the  enterprise  without  striking  a blow,  and 
with  two  or  three  ships — the  remnant  of  his  fleet — he  took  shelter  in  the 
harbor  of  Chebucto  (now  Halifax)  in  Nova  Scotia.  There  he  died,  it  is 
believed,  from  the  effects  of  self-administered  poison;  and  his  lieutenant 
who  succeeded  him,  committed  suicide  because  of  mortified  pride.  As  in 
the  case  of  the  capture  of  Louisburg,  the  New  Englanders  now  regarded 
this  delivery  as  the  interposition  of  a special  providence ; and  the  bells  of 
Boston  and  other  towns  rang  out  merry  peals  of  joy,  while  thousands  knelt 
in  the  meeting-houses  and  poured  out  thanksgivings  to  God  for  his  evident 
favors. 

Hostilities  continued  two  years  longer,  but  the  Americans  suffered  very 
little  from  the  war,  excepting  from  incursions  by  the  French  and  Indians,  on 
their  frontiers.  In  October,  1748,  a treaty  at  Aix-la-Chapelle  put  an  end  to 
the  war,  when  it  was  agreed  that  all  prisoners  taken  by  either  party  should 
be  released,  and  all  acquisitions  of  property  or  territory  by  either  party 
should  be  restored.  So  Cape  Breton  and  its  fortress  passed  into  the  posses- 
sion of  the  French  by  peaceful  means,  and  the  colonies  were  paid  by  the 
British  government  for  their  expenditures  in  capturing  them,  amounting  to 
more  than  a million  dollars.  Both  the  principals  in  the  contest  were  heavy 
losers.  Nothing  had  been  gained.  Humanity  had  severely  suffered. 

National  animosities,  religious  differences,  and  recent  causes  for  irritation, 
had  created  the  most  intense  hatred  between  the  English  and  French 


Chap.  X, 


TENDENCY  OF  PUBLIC  FEELING. 


433 


colonists ; and  the  acts  of  horrid  cruelty  by  the  Indians  made  the  people  on 
the  frontiers  regard  them  as  almost  as  obnoxious  as  ravenous  beasts  of  prey. 
Yet,  firm  in  their  allegiance  to  the  crown  of  Great  Britain,  and  loyal  to  the 
duty  of  obedience,  the  people  of  New  England,  and  especially  of  Massa- 
chusetts, were  impelled  to  a restraint  of  their  resentment  while  England  and 
France  were  at  peace.  But  it  was  not  long  before  disputes  about  territorial 
boundaries  began  which  soon  led  to  preparations  for  hostilities  in  America 
between  the  three  races  who  occupied  the  country.  At  about  the  middle  of 
the  last  century,  they  came  to  blows,  and  then  began  the  fierce  struggle  of 
the  English  and  French  for  dominion  on  this  continent,  known  in  history  as 
“The  French  and  Indian  War.”  This  we  shall  consider  hereafter. 


CHAPTER  XI. 


THE  GOVERNMENT  OF  MARYLAND — DIFFICULTIES  WITH  CLAYBORNE — THE  INDIANS  UNEASY — A 
CIVIL  WAR — TOLERATION  ACT — DISTURBANCES  IN  MARYLAND — GEORGE  FOX  IN  THE  PROVINCE 
— RULE  OF  THE  CALVERTS —INSURRECTIONS— REVOLUTION  IN  ENGLAND — COODE  THE  DIS- 
TURBER OF  MARYLAND— ANNAPOLIS  THE  SEAT  OF  GOVERNMENT — LORD  BALTIMORE  AND 
WILLIAM  PENN— TRANQUILLITY  IN  MARYLAND — THE  FRENCH  AND  INDIAN  WAR. 

At  the  close  of  Chapter  V of  the  Second  Book,  we  have  observed 
that  in  the  year  1639,  a representative  government  was  established 
L in  Maryland.  It  was  crude  in  form,  but  possessed  the  prolific  seeds 
of  a sturdy  republicanism.  The  freemen  chose  as  many  representatives  as 
they  pleased.  So'  did  the  proprietor.  These,  with  the  governor  appointed 
by  the  proprietor,  and  a secretary,  composed  the  government  of  Maryland. 

In  that  first  representative  assembly,  the  people  boldly  asserted  their 
rights  and  dignity.  The  proprietor  presented  to  the  Legislature  a system 
of  laws  which  he  had  framed.  The  representatives  of  the  people,  feeling 
that  the  inherent  right  to  make  laws  resided  in  their  constituents,  rejected 
the  whole  system.  They  adopted  a Declaration  of  Rights,  defining  the 
powers  and  duties  of  each  branch  of  the  government,  and  set  to  work  to 
pass  bills  for  the  security  to  the  people  of  every  privilege  that  belonged  to 
a British  subject.  This  popular  sovereignty  was  briefly  contested  by  Lord 
Baltimore,  by  a series  of  vetoes  or  refusals  to  sign  such  bills.  After  vetoing 
more  than  forty,  and  finding  the  people  firm,  the  proprietor  gave  up  the 
contest  and  yielded  gracefully  to  the  popular  will. 

The  province  now  had  an  aspect  of  profound  repose,  for  the  Indians 
regarded  the  new  settlers  as  friends.  Everything  social  and  political 
promised  for  Maryland  a long  career  of  peace  and  prosperity,  when  personal 
ambition  and  greed,  as  usual,  disturbed  the  serenity  of  society.  A restless 
adventurer,  named  William  Clayborne,  had  received  authority  from  the 
governor  of  Virginia,  so  early  as  1627,  to  explore  the  headwaters  of  Ches- 
apeake Bay  north  of  the  34th  degree  of  latitude.  Four  years  later.  King 
Charles  gave  to  Clayborne  the  privilege  of  making  discoveries  in  the  same 
region,  and  trafficking  with  the  natives.  He  established  a trading-post  on 
Kent  Island,  in  Chesapeake  Bay,  not  far  from  Annapolis.  When  Governor 


Chap.  XI. 


A TROUBLER  OF  THE  MARYLAND  COLONY. 


435 


Calvert  visited  Governor  Harvey,  while  the  colonists  for  Maryland  were  on 
their  way  to  that  province,  Clayborne  appeared  and  gave  them  ominous 
warnings  of  the  hostilities  of  the  Indians,  to  which  they  would  be  subjected. 
Not  succeeding  in  frightening  the  emigrants,  he  insisted  upon  the  exemption 
of  Kent  Island  from  the  jurisdiction  of  the  Maryland  proprietor,  because  his 
grant  was  older  than  Lord  Baltimore’s  thereto.  The  Virginia  Assembly 
secretly  supported  his  claim  ; and  when  Calvert  insisted  that  Clayborne 
should  either  leave  the  island  or  take  an  oath  of  allegiance  to  the  governor, 
he  would  do  neither,  but  fitted  out  an  armed  vessel  to  protect  his  domain 
and  cruise  against  the  colonists.  His  vessel  was  captured  by  a Maryland 
force,  and  Clayborne,  who  was  not  in  the  expedition,  prudently  fled  to 
Virginia,  and  there  effectually  excited  the  hostility  of  the  Indians  against 
Calvert’s  colony,  telling  the  savages  that  they  were  Spaniards.  The  gover- 
nor of  Maryland  demanded  the  body  of  Clayborne  as  a rebel  and  traitor, 
and  he  was  saved  from  arrest  only  by  fleeing  to  England.  The  Maryland 
Legislature,  in  1638,  deprived  Clayborne  of  his  civil  rights  and  property, 
within  their  jurisdiction.  He  laid  his'  case  before  the  king,  and  it  was 
decided  against  him.  For  a few  years  afterward  he  did  not  appear  as  an 
open  enemy  of  the  Maryland  government. 

During  the  lull  in  Clayborne’s  active  hostility,  he  had  secretly  poisoned 
the  minds  of  the  Indians  with  suspicions  of  dark  designs  on  the  part  of  the 
settlers  toward  them.  The  king  of  the  Patuxents  showed  much  unfriend- 
liness, and  the  colonists  were  disquieted.  But  the  more  powerful  king  of 
the  Piscataways  resolved  to  become  a Christian.  He  had  been  very  sick. 
His  forty  conjurors  could  not  kill  the  malady  and  it  was  likely  to  kill  him, 
when  Father  White,  the  Roman  Catholic  priest  already  mentioned,  by  the 
judicious  use  of  medicines,  cured  the  monarch.  With  a grateful  heart  the 
king  asked  to  be  baptized.  He  urged  his  chiefs  to  receive  the  rite.  On  a 
warm  summer’s  day  in  1640,  in  a chapel  made  of  bark  for  the  bccasion,  the 
king,  his  queen,  and  their  little  child,  with  several  of  his  council,  were 
baptized  in  the  presence  of  the  governor  and  other  distinguished  citizens. 
The  king  was  named  Charles  in  honor  of  the  British  sovereign  ; and  in  the 
afternoon  he  and  his  queen  were  married,  in  accordance  with  Christian  rites. 
His  daughter,  an  intelligent  young  woman,  followed  her  father’s  example, 
and  was  sent  to  school  at  St.  Mary’s.  His  example  was  also  followed  by 
many  other  leading  persons  among  the  Indians ; and  they  promised  to  be  a 
shield  for  the  colonists  against  outside  barbarians.  But  the  king  soon  after- 
ward died,  and  his  daughter  at  St.  Mary’s  became  queen.  She  could  not 
protect  the  Christians  against  hostile  pagans  within  their  borders  and  beyond, 
with  whom  Clayborne  and  his  emissaries  had  tampered. 


436 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  III. 


The  Indians,  alarmed  by  the  rapid  increase  of  Englishmen  in  their 
country,  and  made  suspicious  by  the  false  testimony  of  Clayborne,  at  length 
took  a hostile  position  and  made  war  on  the  intruders  in  1642.  The  war 
was  mild,  but  lasted  between  two  and  three  years.  It  had  just  ended  when 
Clayborne,  assisted  by  Captain  Richard  Ingle,  stirred  up  the  people  to 
rebellion.  The  insurrection  flamed  out  with  greater  vehemence  than  the 
Indian  war,  but  was  not  so  long.  Civil  war  was  then  raging  in  England,  and 
the  proprietor  could  not  expect  aid  from  the  virtually  dethroned  monarch. 


THE  PRIEST  AS  A PHYSICIAN. 


The  rebels,  assisted  by  disaffected  Indians,  instantly  triumphed,  and  the 
governor  and  his  council  were  compelled  to  fly  into  Virginia.  For  about  a 
year  and  a half  the  insurgents  held  the  reins  of  power,  and  the  horrors  of 
civil  war  brooded  over  fair  and  once  happy  Maryland.  The  rebellion  was 
crushed  in  the  summer  of  1646,  when  the  governor  returned  to  his  chair  of 
state.  During  the  turmoil  many  of  the  records  of  the  province  were 
destroyed,  and  a greater  portion  of  them  were  carried  into  Virginia  by 


Chap.  XI. 


TOLERATION  ACTS. 


437 


Captain  Ingle  and  were  lost.  A wise  clemency  extended  a general  pardon 
to  the  rebels,  excepting  Ingle,  and  tranquillity  was  speedily  restored. 

Lord  Baltimore  displaced  Green,  a Roman  Catholic,  who  had  been  acting- 
governor  since  the  decease  of  Leonard  Calvert,  and  commissioned  William 
Stone  of  Virginia,  a Protestant  and  warm  friend  of  Parliament.  Through 
his  influence  the  Virginia  Puritans  came  to  the  waters  of  the  Chesapeake, 
insisting  upon  liberty  of  conscience.  Soon  after  that  the  Maryland  Assem- 
bly of  1649  met,  says  John  Hammond  (a  friend  of  Lord  Baltimore,  in  a pam- 
phlet published  in  London  in  1656),  composed  of  Puritans,  Church  of  Eng- 
land men,  and  a few  Roman  Catholics.  It  was  this  body  of  a majority  of 
Protestants  that  passed  the  Toleration  Act  of  which  so  much  has  been  written. 
That  act  seems  to  have  been  an  outgrowth  of  statutes  passed  by  the  British 
Parliament  in  1645  and  1647,  and  adopted  by  the  Maryland  Legislature 
under  the  pressure  of  the  strong  Puritan  influence  then  existing  there.  By 
that  act,. every  believer  in  Jesus  Christ  and  the  Trinity,  was  allowed  the  free 
exercise  of  his  or  her  religious  opinions,  but  from  this  “toleration”  Jews 
and  Unitarians  were  alike  excluded,  and  it  was  far  from  being  a full  “Tolera- 
tion Act.”  No  man  was  allowed  to  reproach  another  on  account  of  his 
peculiar  religious  doctrines,  excepting  under  the  penalty  of  a fine  to  be  paid 
to  the  person  so  insulted ; and  to  Maryland  the  persecuted  in  other  colonies 
now  flocked  to  enjoy  this  broader  freedom — Churchmen  from  New  England, 
Puritans  from  Virginia,  and  Roman  Catholics  from  all.  That  act  is  the 
pride  and  glory  of  Maryland’s  early  legislation,  yet  it  was  not  the  first  act 
of  the  kind  (as  has  been  often  alleged)  passed  by  a colonial  assembly  in 
America.  In  May,  1647 — two  years  before — the  General  Assembly  of  Rhode 
Island  adopted  a code  of  laws  which  closed  with  the  declaration  that  “ all 
men  may  walk  as  their  consciences  persuaded  them,  without  molestation — 
every  one  in  the  name  of  his  God.”  This  would  include  Jew  or  Moham- 
medan, Parsee  or  Pagan.  It  was  absolute  toleration. 

For  more  than  ten  years  republicanism  prevailed  in  England.  Lord 
Baltimore,  whose  politics  and  theology  were  easy-fitting  garments,  professed 
to  be  a republican  when  the  king  lost  his  head,  but  he  had  too  lately  been  a 
decided  royalist  to  secure  the  confidence  of  Parliament.  They  appointed  a 
commission,  of  which  Clayborne  was  a member,  to  govern  Maryland.  These 
commissioners  entered  upon  their  duties  there  with  a high  hand.  They 
demanded  a sight  of  Governor  Stone’s  commission,  and  when  he  produced 
it,  they  snatched  it  from  his  hands,  removed  him  and  his  subordinates  from 
office,  took  possession  of  the  records  and  abolished  the  authority  of  the 
proprietor  of  the  province.  A few  months  afterward  they  reinstated  Gover- 
nor Stone,  put  Kent  and  Polmer’s  islands  into  the  possession  of  Clayborne, 


438 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  IIL 


and  so  enabled  the  vigorous  “ outlaw  ” to  trample  over  his  enemy,  Lord 
Baltimore. 

When  the  Long  Parliament  was  dissolved  in  1653,  Cromwell  restored  full 
power  to  Baltimore  as  proprietor.  Stone  proclaimed  the  movements  of 
the  commissioners  to  have  been  rebellious.  He  displaced  all  officers 
appointed  by  them,  and  in  other  ways  acted  very  unwisely.  The  incensed 
commissioners  returned  to  Maryland  and  compelled  the  governor  to  sur- 
render his  authority.  Then  they  vested  the  government  of  the  province  in 
a board  of  ten  commissioners. 

Now  the  passions  of  the  opposing  political  and  religious  parties  were 
aroused  into  vehement  action.  The  Protestants,  who  were  still  the  majority 
in  the  General  Assembly  which  convened  in  the  fall  of  1654,  were  imbued 
with  the  narrow  bigotry  of  the  early  Puritans  of  Massachusetts,  and,  unmind- 
ful of  the  better  principles  of  the  Toleration  Act  of  1649,  they  wantonly 
disfranchised  the  Roman  Catholics  and  members  of  the  Church  of  England, 
by  passing  a law  which  declared  that  Papists  and  Churchmen  were  not 
entitled  to  the  protection  of  the  laws  of  Maryland.  These  zealots  flogged 
and  imprisoned  Quakers;  and  their  unworthy  triumph  was  celebrated  in  a 
book  published  in  London  entitled  “ Babylon’s  P'all  in  Maryland.” 

When  intelligence  of  these  unrighteous  proceedings  reached  London, 
Lord  Baltimore  obtained  an  audience  with  Cromwell,  then  Lord  High  Pro- 
tector and  real  monarch  of  England.  These  eminent  men  met  in  the 
Council  Chamber  at  Whitehall,  in  friendly  conference.  Cromwell  in  power 
was  not  like  Cromwell  fighting  for  power.  He  was  tolerant.  His  Latin 
Secretary,  the  eminent  John  Milton  (who  was  present  at  the  interview),  had 
assisted  in  making  him  so.  When  Baltimore  courteously  protested  against 
the  injustice  of  Puritan  legislation  in  Maryland,  the  Protector  said:  “I 
v^ould  that  all  the  sects,  like  the  cedar  and  the  myrtle  and  the  oil-tree, 
should  be  planted  in  the  wilderness  together,”  and  assured  Lord  Baltimore 
that  he  disapproved  of  the  ungrateful  decree.  That  assurance  was  followed 
by  an  order  which  Cromwell  sent  to  the  commissioners  “ not  to  busy  them- 
selves about  religion,  but  to  settle  the  civil  government.” 

So  encouraged.  Lord  Baltimore  determined  to  vindicate  the  rights  of  his 
people.  He  upbraided  Stone  for  his  want  of  firmness,  and  ordered  him  to 
raise  an  army  for  the  restoration  of  the  authority  of  the  proprietor.  Stone, 
smarting  under  rebuke,  acted  vigorously.  He  raised  a force,  chiefly  of 
Poman  Catholics,  seized  the  colonial  records,  resumed  the  office  of  governor, 
and  ina’"  ""urated  civil  war.  Skirmishes  followed.  I'inally,  a sharp  battle 
was  fougTit,  early  in  April,  1655,  near  the  site  of  Annapolis,  in  which  Stone 
was  defeated  and  made  prisoner,  and  about  fifty  of  his  party  were  killed  or 


Chap.  XL 


GEORGE  FOX  IN  MARYLAND. 


439 


wounded.  The  governor  and  others  were  tried  for  treason.  His  life  was 
spared,  but  four  of  his  colleagues  were  hanged. 

For  several  months,  anarchy  reigned  supreme  in  Maryland,  when  Lord 
Baltimore  appointed  Josias  Fendall,  a former  insurgent,  to  be  governor  of 
the  province.  Suspected  of  favoring  the  Roman  Catholics,  the  Protestant 
Assembly  ordered  his  arrest  as  a disturber  of  the  peace,  and  for  two  years 
longer  there  was  bitter  strife  between  the  people  and  the  agents  of  the 
proprietor.  The  latter  finally  made  important  popular  concessions,  and 
Fendall  was  permitted  to  act  as  the  governor.  By  prudent  conduct  he 
secured  the  confidence  of  the  people,  and  Lord  Baltimore  anticipated  a 
lasting  relief  from  trouble  on  account  of  his  American  possessions,  when 
Cromwell  died  and  there  were  disquieting  presages  of  a change  in  the 
government  of  England.  The  people  of  Maryland  did  not  wait  upon  move- 
ments at  home,  but  boldly  asserting  their  supreme  authority,  dissolved  the 
proprietary  portion  of  the  General  Assembly  in  the  spring  of  1660,  and 
assumed  the  whole  legislative  power  of  the  State.  The  popular  representa- 
tives then  gave  Fendall  a commission  as  governor. 

Three  months  after  this  political  revolution  in  Maryland,  monarchy  was 
restored  in  England,  and  the  son  of  the  beheaded  sovereign  ascended  the 
throne  as  Charles  the  Second.  This  event  was  soon  followed  by  the  resto- 
ration of  his  proprietary  authority  to  Lord  Baltimore.  Fendall  was  tried 
for  and  found  guilty  of  treason,  because  he  had  accepted  office  from  the 
“ rebellious  assembly.”  But  Baltimore  wisely  proclaimed  a general  pardon 
for  all  political  offenders,  and  for  about  thirty  years  afterward  Maryland 
enjoyed  comparative  repose,  while  her  neighbor,  Virginia,  was  torn  by  civil 
war.  Under  the  mild  proprietary  rule,  the  province  prospered  and  the 
people  were  happy.  Commerce  flourished.  The  soil  yielded  rich  rewards 
for  labor.  Industry  was  fostered  by  well-paid  labor,  and  feminine  hands 
found  ample  and  profitable  employment,  as  in  peaceful  Pennsylvania  at  the 
same  time.  A quaint  writer  of  the  period,  discoursing  on  Pennsylvania, 
says  in  relation  to  the  “ price  of  women’s  labor : ” “ One  reason  why 
women’s  wages  are  so  exorbitant  is  that  they  are  not  very  numerous,  which 
makes  them  stand  upon  high  terms  for  their  several  services,  and  moreover, 
they  are  usually  married  before  they  are  twenty  years  of  age,  and  when  once 
in  that  noose,  are  for  the  most  part  a little  uneasie,  and  make  their  husbands 
so  too,  till  they  procure  them  a maid-servant  to  bear  the  burden  of  the 
work,  as  also,  in  some  measure,  to  wait  on  them,  too.” 

Emigrants  came  to  Maryland  from  almost  every  part  of  Europe  to  enjoy 
the  tolerant  rule  there;  and  the  pleasant  spectacle  was  seen  of  George  Fox, 
the  founder  of  the  sect  called  “Friends,”  or  “Quakers,”  preaching  in  the 
29 


440 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book.  HI. 


evening  twilight  on  the  shores  of  the  Chesapeake  to  a multitude  of  people, 
comprising  members  of  the  Legislature  and  other  distinguished  men  of  the 
province,  and  a large  group  of  Indian  kings  and  chieftains,  with  their  wives 
and  children,  led  by  their  emperor.  But  the  refusal  of  the  Friends  to  perform 
military  duty  or  take  an  oath,  subjected  them  to  fines  and  harsh  imprison- 
ments. This  was  a civil  matter,  and  had  nothing  to  do  with  their  religious 
tenets. 

When  monarchy  was  restored,  the  people  of  Maryland  were  in  full 
possession  of  the  liberty  founded  upon  popular  sovereignty,  and  never 
parted  with  the  precious  treasure.  The  population  of  the  province  consisted 
of  about  ten  thousand  white  people  living  together  in  comparative  harmony, 
the  fierceness  of  religious  bigotry  having  been  subdued  by  mutual  conces- 
sions. 


GEORGE  FOX  PREACHING  IN  MARYLAND. 


Lord  Baltimore  died  in  1675,  after  a rule  in  Maryland,  with  several  inter- 
ruptions, for  forty-three  years.  He  was  crowned  in  his  old  age  with  the 
blessings  and  honors  of  a colony  which  he  had  planted  in  his  youth.  He 
had  never  trodden  the  soil  of  Maryland,  but  a grateful  people  cherished  his 
memory  as  they  would  that  of  a beloved  father  known  to  them  in  person. 
The  commercial  capital  of  that  State  bears  the  name  of  his  title.  His  son 
and  successor,  Charles,  followed  in  the  footsteps  of  his  liberal  father  in 
fostering  toleration  and  humanity;  and  he  and  his  successors  continued, 
Avith  a few  interruptions,  to  administer  the  government  of  the  province  until 
the  storm  of  the  revolution,  which  burst  forth  in  1775.  swept  away  every 


Chap.  XI. 


CRITICAL  STATE  OF  AFFAIRS  IN  MARYLAND. 


441 


vestige  of  proprietary  and  royal  government  in  the  English-American 
colonies.  The  title  of  Lord  Baltimore  became  extinct  in  1771,  and  the  last 
of  the  family  in  England,  of  whom  anything  is  known,  was  a prisoner  for 
debt  in  the  Queen’s  Bench  prison  in  London,  in  i860.  In  that,  and  the 
Fleet  prison,  he  had  then  been  confined,  by  the  fiat  of  the  barbarous  law, 
twenty  years. 

Maryland,  like  the  other  colonies,  was  shaken  by  the  revolution  in  Eng- 
land in  1688,  and  experienced  deep  sorrows  for  awhile.  For  several  years 
before,  the  democratic  ideas  then  rapidly  spreading  over  the  provinces, 
could  not  reconcile  the  rule  of  a lord  proprietor  with  the  principles  of  repub- 
licanism. Even  so  early  as  when  Charles  Calvert  went  to  England  after  the 
death  of  his  father,  signs  of  political  discontent  were  conspicuous  in  Mary- 
land. In  1678,  the  General  Assembly,  influenced  by  the  popular  feeling, 
established  the  right  of  suffrage — casting  of  a vote  for  rulers — on  a broad 
basis.  When  Charles  returned  in  1681,  he  annulled  this  act,  and  by  an 
arbitrary  ordinance  restricted  the  right  to  freemen  owning  fifty  acres  of  land 
or  personal  property  of  the  value  of  forty  pounds  sterling.  This  produced 
great  disquietude,  and  Ex-Governor  Fendall  planned  an  insurrection  for  the 
purpose  of  abolishing  the  proprietorship  and  establishing  an  independent 
Republican  government.  The  king  was  induced  to  issue  orders  that  all 
offices  of  government  in  Maiydand  should  be  filled  by  Protestants  alone ; 
and  so,  again,  the  Roman  Catholics  were  deprived  of  their  political  rights. 

In  1684,  Lord  Baltimore  again  went  to  England,  leaving  the  government 
of  his  province  in  charge  of  several  deputies  under  the  nominal  governor- 
ship of  his  infant  son.  There  he  found  his  rights  in  great  peril ; but  before 
the  matter  was  brought  to  a direct  issue  by  the  operation  of  a writ  of  quo 
warranto,  King  James  was  driven  from  the  throne  and  Protestant  William 
and  Mary  ascended  it.  Lord  Baltimore  immediately  acquiesced  in  the 
political  change.  Because  his  instructions  to  his  deputies  to  proclaim  the 
new  monarchs  were  delayed  in  their  transmission,  he  was  charged  with 
hesitancy;  and  a restless  spirit  named  Coode,  an  associate  of  Fendall  in  his 
insurrectionary  movements — a man  of  loose  morals  and  blasphemous  speech 
— excited  the  people  by  the  cr>^  of  “a  Popish  plot!”  He  circulated  the 
false  story  that  the  local  magistrates  in  Maryland,  and  the  Roman  Catholics 
there,  had  engaged  with  the  Indians  in  a plot  for  the  destruction  of  the 
Protestants  in  the  province.  An  actual  league  at  that  time  between  the 
French  and  the  Jesuit  missionaries  with  the  savages  on  the  New  England 
frontiers  for  the  destruction  of  the  English  colonies  in  the  East  gave  the 
coloring  of  truth  to  the  story,  which  created  great  excitement.  The  old 
feud  burned  intensely.  The  Protestants  formed  an  armed  association.  Led 


442 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book.  111. 


by  Coode,  they  marched  to  the  Maryland  capital,  took  possession  of  the 
records  and  assumed  the  functions  of  a provisional  government,  in  May, 
1689.  They  met  in  convention  in  August  following,  when  they  prepared 
and  sent  to  the  new  sovereigns  a report  of  their  proceedings  and  a series  of 
absurd  and  false  accusations  against  Lord  Baltimore.  In  conclusion,  they 
requested  the  monarchs  to  depose  Lord  Baltimore  by  making  Maryland  a 
royal  province  and  taking  it  under  the  protection  of  the  crown. 

The  sovereigns  listened  favorably  to  the  representations  of  the  conven- 
tion and  complied  with  their  requests.  Coode  was  ordered  to  administer 
the  government  in  the  name  of  the  king,  and  so  the  people  were  punished 
for  their  folly  in  elevating  him  to  leadership.  He  ruled  with  the  spirit  of  a 
petty  tyrant,  until  the  people  of  every  religious  and  political  creed  were 
heartily  disgusted  with  him.  He  was  displaced  in  1692,  when  the  king  sent 
Sir  Lionel  Copley  to  be  governor  of  Maryland. 

The  new  governor  arrived  in  the  spring  of  that  year  and  summoned  a 
General  Assembly  to  meet  at  St.  Mary’s  in  May.  New  laws  were  instituted. 
Religious  toleration  was  abolished.  The  Church  of  England  was  made  the 
state  church  for  Maryland,  to  be  supported  by  a tax  on  the  whole  people. 
“Thus,”  says  McMahon,  “was  introduced,  for  the  first  time  in  Maryland,  a 
church  establishment  sustained  by  law  and  fed  by  general  taxation.  Other 
laws  oppressive  in  their  bearings  upon  those  opposed  in  religious  views  to 
the  dominant  party  were  enacted,  some  of  which  remained  in  force  until  the 
glorious  emancipation  day  in  the  summer  of  1776  gave  freedom  to  our  nation. 

Partly  because  the  whole  people  of  Maryland  might  be  better  accom- 
modated, but  largely  for  the  purpose  of  punishing  the  adherents  of  Lord 
Baltimore,  who  constituted  a greater  portion  of  the  population  of  St.  Mary’s, 
the  seat  of  government  was  moved  from  there  to  Anne  Arundel  town,  on 
the  shore  of  the  Chesapeake,  early  in  1694,  and  there  a General  Assembly 
was  convened  in  February.  The  following  year  the  name  of  the  place  was 
changed  by  authority  to  Annapolis,  and  the  naval  station  of  the  province 
was  established  there.  Annapolis  has  continued  to  be  the  capital  of  Mary- 
land until  now.  St.  Mary’s,  dependent  for  its  existence  upon  its  being 
the  capital  of  the  province,  speedily  sunk  into  insignificance  and  fell  into 
ruins. 

Lord  Baltimore  never  recovered  his  proprietary  rights.  Neither  did  he 
return  to  America,  but  died  in  England  in  1714,  at  the  age  of  eighty-five 
years.  He  was  succeeded  by  his  son  Benedict  Leonard  Calvert.  That  son 
had  abandoned  the  faith  of  his  father  and  died  in  the  spring  of  1715,  when 
his  title  to  the  province  devolved  upon  his  infant  son  Charles,  who,  with  his 
brothers  and  sisters,  had  been  educated  as  Protestants. 


Chap.  Xhf 


RESTORATION  OF  PROPRIETARY  RIGHTS. 


443 


Charles  Calvert  Lord  Baltimore  and  William  Penn  were  cotemporaries, 
and  were  equally  conspicuous  for  their  beneficent  disposition.  They  are 
regarded  as  the  best  of  all  the  proprietaries  who  owned  chartered  domains 
in  America.  This  sentiment  is  shadowed  in  the  following  lines  by  a minor 
English  poet : 

“Laws  formed  to  harmonize  contrarious  creeds, 

And  heal  the  wounds  through  which  a nation  bleeds  ; 

Laws  mild,  impartial,  tolerant  and  fixed, 

A bond  of  union  for  a people  mixed  ; 

Such  as  good  Calvert  framed  for  Baltimore, 

And  Penn  the  Numa  of  th’  Atlantic  shore.” 


/ 

WILLIAM  PENN. 


There  being  no  longer  any  objection  to  the  Baltimore  family  on  account 
of  religion,  the  British  government  restored  to  the  young  scion  of  that 
noble  house,  all  the  rights  of  proprietary.ship  in  1715.  This  restoration  did 
not  affect  the  republican  sentiment  of  a great  majority  of  the  people  of  the 
province,  except  to  stimulate  its  growth.  The  first  legislature  which  met, 
after  the  Restoration,  passed  a body  of  laws  based  upon  the  broadest  prin- 
ciples of  civil  and  religious  liberty,  some  of  which  yet  remain  in  force  in 
Maryland.  There  was  a single  blot  on  the  legislation  of  that  Assembly. 


444 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


► Book  III. 


They  introduced  into  Maryland  all  of  the  odious  test-oaths  and  disabilities 
which  were  enforced  in  England  against  the  consciences  of  men. 

For  almost  forty  years  after  the  Restoration  the  colony  enjoyed  remark- 
able tranquillity.  Only  the  natural  disputes  that  arose  between  a lord  pro- 
prietor and  a people  of  strong  republican  tendencies  in  thought  and  action, 
and  the  flutter  of  excitement  caused  by  the  furnishing  of  men  to  aid  the 
northern  colonies  in  their  struggles  with  the  common  foe  on  the  frontiers, 
disturbed  the  general  repose. 

Charles  Lord  Baltimore  died  in  1751,  after  ruling  the  province  in  person 
and  by  deputies  about  thirty-six  years.  During  that  period  the  growth  of 
the  province  in  wealth  and  population  was  remarkable.  The  inhabitants 
then  numbered  more  than  one  hundred  and  thirty-five  thousand  souls,  of 
whom  about  forty  thousand  were  black  men  and  women,  who  were  mostly 
slaves.  The  several  provinces  were  then  agitated  by  the  encroachments  of  the 
French  upon  the  territory  of  the  Ohio  and  Mississippi  valleys,  toward  which 
English  adventurers  were  casting  longing  eyes.  In  the  French  and  Indian 
war  that  broke  out  in  1755,  Maryland  became  involved,  at  first,  simply  in 
the  maintenance  of  an  attitude  of  self-defence  and  a generous  assistant  of 
its  sister  colonies.  Its  legislature  for  awhile  persistently  stood  aloof  from 
aggressive  warfare  in  spite  of  the  commands  of  the  king  and  the  entreaties 
of  Virginia.  They  consented  to  send  delegates  to  the  colonial  convention 
which  assembled  at  Albany  in  1754,  but  the  delegates  offended  their  con- 
stituents by  agreeing  to  a plan  of  union  submitted  by  Dr.  Franklin,  by 
which  the  several  colonies  might  act  with  national  power  in  the  prosecution 
of  measures  of  defence  against  the  common  enemy.  The  Marylanders, 
ever  jealous  of  their  colonial  rights  and  proud  of  their  separate  independence 
as  a colony,  and  their  inherent  sovereignty,  had  always  opposed  every 
attempt  to  effect  a fusion  of  the  colonies  into  one  government.  \\Ten  the 
plan  agreed  upon  at  Albany  was  submitted  to  the  General  Assembly  of 
Maryland,  it  was  unanimously  disapproved  as  “ tending  to  the  destruction  of 
the  rights  and  liberties  of  his  majesty’s  subjects  in  the  province.” 

The  time  soon  arrived  when  the  Marylanders  could  no  longer  stand  in  the 
attitude  of  separatist  and  avoid  taking  an  active  aggressive  part  in  the  war, 
for  its  surges  were  beating  upon  the  borders  of  their  province.  The  Indians 
were  plundering  their  frontier.  The  General  Assembly,  aroused  by  imme- 
diate danger,  voted  men  and  money  for  a vigorous  prosecution  of  the  war; 
and  the  command  of  all  the  forces  engaged  against  the  French  on  the  Ohio 
was  given,  by  a royal  commission,  to  Governor  Sharpe,  of  Maryland.  The 
people  of  that  province  were  forced  by  circumstances  to  consent  to  a union 
which  was  finally  cemented  by  the  blood  of  the  Revolution. 


CHAPTER  XII. 


THE  CONNECTICUT  COLONIES — AN  ABSURD  RUMOR  ABOUT  THE  DUTCH — CHARTER  FOR  CONNEC- 
TICUT OBTAINED — TYRANNY  OF  GOVERNOR  ANDROS — HIS  ATTE.MTT  TO  SEIZE  THE  CHARTER 
— THE  CHARTER  OAK  — FREEDOM  ENJOYED  IN  RHODE  ISLAND  — SOCIETY  THERE  — NEW 
CHARTER  FOR  RHODE  ISLAND  OBTAINED — ITS  DURATION — ANDROS  IN  RHODE  ISLAND — NEW 
JERSEY  CONSIDERED — ITS  SOCIAL  AND  POLITICAL  CONDITION — THE  PROVINCE  DIVIDED — THE 
QUAKERS  SETTLE  THERE — ANDROS  IN  NEW  JERSEY — IT  BECOMES  A ROYAL  PROVINCE. 


HE  Connecticut  colonists  worked  in  harmony  as  brethren  of  the 


in  1665.  They  managed  their  private  and  public  affairs  prudently 
and  were  prosperous.  Troubles'with  the  Dutch,  concerning  territorial  boun- 
daries, were  amicably  settled  with  Stuyvesant  when  he  visited  Hartford  in 
1650;  but  the  mutterings  of  dissatisfaction  which  fell  from  the  lips  of  the 
neighboring  Indian  tribes  gave  them  some  disquietude,  and  made  them 
heartily  approve  and  join  the  New  England  Confederacy  formed  in  1643. 
The  following  year  the  little  independent  colony  at  Saybrook,  at  the  mouth 
of  the  Connecticut  River,  which  had  been  formed  in  1639,  was  annexed  to 
that  of  Connecticut  at  Hartford,  and  was  the  precursor  of  the  final  union  of 
the  three  colonies  about  twenty  years  afterwards. 

The  repose  of  the  colonists  was  broken  in  1653,  by  a war  between 
England  and  Holland.  An  alarming  rumor  had  spread  over  New  England 
that  Ninigret,  an  “old,  crafty  and  wily  sachem”  of  the  allied  Niantics  and 
Narragansets,  who  had  spent  part  of  a winter  at  New  Amsterdam,  had 
made  a league  with  Stuyvesant  for  the  destruction  of  the  New  England 
colonies.  The  majority  of  the  commissioners  of  the  New  England  Con- 
federacy believed  the  absurd  story,  and  decided  to  make  war  on  the  Dutch. 
The  Connecticut  people  were  specially  eager  for  war,  for  they  were  more 
immediately  exposed  to  the  effects  of  such  a plot  than  the  other  colonists. 
But  Massachusetts  refused  to  furnish  men  and  arms  for  an  aggressive  war, 
before,  an  investigation  of  the  matter.  Messengers  were  sent  to  Ninigret 
and  his  associate  sachems  for  the  latter  purpose.  These  were  questioned 
separately,  and  all  concurred  in  the  solemn  assurance  that  they  had  no 
knowledge  of  such  a plot.  Ninigret,  who  went  to  New  Amsterdam  for 
medical  treatment,  said  with  emphasis,  in  his  denial,  “ I found  no  such  enter- 


same  nation  and  creed  until  their  fusion  into  one  commonwealth 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  III. 


446 


tainment  from  the  Dutch  governor,  when  I was  there,  as  to  give  me  any 
encouragement  to  stir  me  up  to  such  a league  against  the  English,  my 
friends.  It  was  winter  time,  and  I stood  a great  part  of  a winter  day  knock- 
ing at  the  governor’s  door,  and  he  would  neither  open  it,  nor  suffer  others 
to  open  it,  to  let  me  in.  I was  not  w'ont  to  find  such  carriage  from  the 
English,  my  friends.” 

The  story  of  the  Dutch-Indian  plot  appears  to  have  been  a pure  inven-  • 

tion  of  Uncas,  the  crafty  sachem  of 
the  Mohegans,  who  was  a foe  of 
Ninigret,  and  was  extremely  jeal- 
ous of  the  supposed  friendship 
between  that  sachem  and  the 
English.  It  caused  the  frightened 
Connecticut  colonists,  when  Massa- 
chusetts refused  to  join  them  in 
war  upon  the  Dutch,  to  ask  Crom- 
well for  aid.  The  Protector  sent 
four  ships-of-war,  but  before  their 
arrival  a treaty  of  peace  had  ended 
the  war  between  England  and 
Holland,  and  blood  and  treasure 
were  saved  in  America. 

On  the  restoration  of  monarchy 
in  England,  in  1660,  the  Connec- 
ticut colonists  had  fears  regarding 
their  future.  Their  sturdy  repub- 
licanism and  independent  action  in 
the  past  might  be  mortally  offen- 
sive to  the  new  monarch.  The 
General  Assembly  of  Connec- 
ticut, therefore,  resolved  to  make 
a formal  acknowledgment  of  their 
allegiance  to  the  crown  and  ask  the 
king  for  a charter.  A petition  was 
accordingly  framed  and  signed  in  May,  1651,  and  Governor  John  Winthrop 
bore  it  to  England.  He  was  a son  of  Winthrop  of  Massachusetts,  and  was 
a man  of  rare  attainments  and  courtly  manners,  and  then  about  forty-five 
years  of  age.  He  obtained  an  interview  with  the  king,  and  was  received 
with  coolness.  His  name  and  the  people  over  whom  he  was  the  chosen 
ruler  were  associated  with  radical  republicanism,  and  the  king  received  the 


Chap.  XU. 


CHARTER  FOR  CONNECTICUT  GRANTED. 


447 


prayer  of  the  petitioners  with  disfavor.  Winthrop  left  the  royal  presence, 
disappointed  but  not  disheartened,  and  sought  and  obtained  another  inter- 
view. 

The  “ merrie  monarch”  was  now  in  more  genial  mood.  He  chatted 
freely  with  Winthrop  about  America — its  soil,  productions,  the  Indians  and 
the  settlers ; yet  he  hesitated  to  promise  a charter.  Winthrop,  it  is  said, 
finally  drew  from  his  pocket  a gold  ring  of  great  value,  which  the  king’s 
father  had  given  to  the  governor’s  grandfather,  and  presented  it  to  his 
majesty  with  a request  that  he  would  accept  it  as  a memorial  of  the  unfor- 
tunate monarch,  and  a token  of  Winthrop’s  esteem  for,  and  loyalty  to  King 
Charles,  before  whom  he  stood  as  a faithful  and  loving  subject.  The  king’s 
heart  was  touched.  Turning  to  Lord  Clarendon,  who  was  present,  the 
monarch  said : “ Do  you  advise  me  to  grant  a charter  to  this  good  gentle- 
man and  his  people  ? ” “I  do.  Sire,”  responded  Clarendon.  “ It  shall  be 
done,”  said  Charles,  and  he  dismissed  Winthrop  with  a hearty  shake  of  his 
hand  and  a royal  blessing. 

The  governor  left  Whitehall  with  a light  heart.  A charter  was  issued  on 
the  first  of  May,  1652.  It  confirmed  the  popular  constitution  of  the  colony, 
and  contained  more  liberal  provisions  than  any  yet  issued  by  royal  hands. 
It  defined  the  boundaries  so  as  to  include  the  New  Haven  colony  and  a part 
of  Rhode  Island  on  the  East,  and  westward  to  the  Pacific  Ocean.  The 
New  Haven  colony  reluctantly  gave  its  consent  to  the  union,  in  1665,  and 
the  boundary  between  Connecticut  and  Rhode  Island  remained  a subject 
of  dispute  for  more  than  sixty  years.  That  old  charter,  engrossed  on  parch- 
ment, is  among  the  archives  in  the  Connecticut  State  Department.  It 
bears  the  miniature  portrait  of  Charles  the  Second,  drawn  in  India  ink  by 
Samuel  Cooper,  it  is  supposed,  who  was  an  eminent  London  miniature 
painter  of  the  time. 

During  King  Philip’s  war,  the  colonists  of  Connecticut  did  not  suffer 
much  from  hostile  Indians,  excepting  some  remote  settlers  high  up  the  Con- 
necticut River.  They  furnished  their  full  measure  of  men  and  supplies,  and 
their  soldiers  bore  a conspicuous  part  in  that  contest  between  the  races  for 
supremacy.  But  while  they  were  freed  from  dangers  and  distress  of  war  with 
the  Indians,  they  were  disturbed  by  the  petty  tyranny  of  Governor  Andros, 
whose  advent  in  New  England  and  New  York  has  been  noticed. 

Seated  at  New  York,  Andros  claimed  jurisdiction  as  far  east  as  the  Con- 
necticut River.  To  the  mouth  of  that  stream  he  went,  with  a small  naval 
force,  in  the  summer  of  1675,  to  assert  his  authority.  Captain  Bull,  the 
commander  of  a small  fort  at  Saybrook,  permitted  him  to  land  ; but  when 
the  governor  began  to  read  his  commission.  Bull  ordered  him  to  be  silent. 


448 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  111. 


Andros  was  compelled  to  yield  to  the  commander’s  bold  spirit  and  his 
superior  military  power,  and  in  a towering  passion  he  returned  to  New  York, 
flinging  curses  and  threats  behind  him  at  the  people  of  Connecticut  in 
general,  and  Captain  Bull  in  particular. 

For  more  than  a dozen  j’ears  after  this  flare-up  of  ambition  and 
passion,  nothing  materially  di.sturbed  the  public  repose  of  Connecticut. 
Then  a most  exciting  scene  occurred  at  Hartford,  in  the  result  of  which  the 
liberties  of  the  colony  were  involved.  Andros  again  appeared  as  a usurper 

of  authority — the  willing  instru- 
ment of  his  master  King  James 
the  Second,  who  had  determined 
to  hold  absolute  rule  over  all 
New  England. 

On  his  arrival  in  New  York, 
as  we  have  seen,  Andros  de- 
manded a surrender  of  all  the 
colonial  charters  into  his  hands. 
The  authorities  of  all  the  colo- 
nies complied,  excepting  those  of 
Connecticut.  The  latter  steadily 
refused  to  yield  their  charter  vol- 
untarily, for  it  was  the  guardian 
of  their  political  rights.  To  sub- 
due their  stubbornness,  the  vice- 
roy proceeded  to  Hartford  with 
sixty  armed  men,  to  demand  the 
surrender  of  the  charter  in  per- 
son. On  his  arrival  there  on  the 
31st  of  October  (O.  S.),  1687,  he 
the  meeting-house.  The  members 
received  him  with  the  courtesy  due  to  his  rank.  Before  that  body,  with 
armed  men  at  his  back,  he  demanded  a formal  surrender  of  the  precious 
document  into  his  own  hands. 

It  was  now  near  sunset.  A subject  of  some  importance  was  under 
debate,  and  the  discussion  was  purposely  continued  until  some  time  after  the 
candles  were  lighted.  Then  the  charter,  contained  in  a long  mahogany  box, 
was  brought  in  and  laid  upon  the  table.  A preconcerted  plan  to  save  it 
from  the  grasp  of  the  usurper  was  now  instantly  executed.  As  Andros  put 
forth  his  hand  to  take  the  charter,  the  candles  were  all  snuffed  out  and  the 
document  was  snatched  by  Captain  Wadsworth,  whose  train-bands  were 


CHARLES  THE  SECOND. 


found  the  General  Assembly  in  session  in 


Chap.  XII. 


CONCEALMENT  OF  THE  ORIGINAL  CHARTER. 


449 


near  to  protect  the  Assembly  from  any  violence  which  the  royal  soldiers 
might  offer.  Wadsworth  bore  away  the  charter,  the  crowd  opening  as  he 
passed  out,  and  closing  behind  him,  and  hid  it  in  the  hollow  of  a venerable 
oak  tree  on  the  outskirts  of  the  village.  When  the  candles  were  re-lighted, 
the  members  were  seated  in  perfect  order,  but  the  charter  could  not  be 
found.'*  This  was  the  same  Captain  Wadsworth  who  afterward  silenced 
Governor  Fletcher,  as  related  on  page  362. 

So,  again,  the  tyrannical  purposes  of  Andros  were  foiled  in  Connecticut. 
Wisely  restraining  his  passion  at  that  time,  he  assumed  the  control  of  the 
government ; declared  the  charter  annulled,  and  Secretary  Allyn  wrote  the 
word  Finis  after  the  last  record  of  the  Journal  of  the  Assembly.  From 
that  time  until  he  was  expelled  from  the  country  in  1689,  he  governed  Con- 
necticut as  an  autocrat — an  absolute  sovereign.  Then  the  charter  was 
brought  out  from  its  place  of  concealment,  in  May,  1689;  a popular  Assem- 


* This  is  the  form  of  the  story  as  it  has  appeared  in  our  histories.  In  April,  1775,  Mr. 
Hoadley,  keeper  of  the  State  records  of  Connecticut,  called  my  attention  to  the  manuscript 
journals  of  the  Colonial  Assembly  at  this  period.  I there  found  reasons  for  giving  a modified 
version  of  the  story.  In  the  Journal  for  June  15,  1687,  is  the  following  entry  : 

“ Sundry  of  the  Court  desiring  that  the  Patent  or  Charter  might  be  brought  into  the  Court, 
the  secretary  sent  for  it,  and  informed  the  governor  and  Court  that  he  had  the  charter,  and 
shewed  it  to  the  Court,  and  the  governor  bid  him  put  it  into  the  box  again,  and  lay  it  on  the 
table,  and  leave  the  key  in  the  box,  which  he  did  forthwith.” 

This  was  the  original  charter  granted  by  Charles  the  Second  to  Governor  Winthrop,  and  sent 
over  in  a neat  mahogany  box  ; and  the  above  is  the  whole  of  the  entry  on  the  subject  made  at 
that  time.  The  records  reveal  the  fact  that  there  was  a duplicate  of  the  charter  written  on 
parchment  when  Andros  came,  and  seem  to  warrant  the  following  explanatory  suggestions  con- 
cerning that  mysterious  act  of  the  General  Court  of  the  colony : 

Andros  was  doubtless  expected  to  appear  at  Hartford  at  any  time  to  demand  the  charter,  and 
it  was  determined  to  save  it  if  possible.  The  box  was  left  on  the  table,  with  the  key  in  it,  for 
somebody  to  take  the  charter  out  without  the  knowledge  or  apparent  connivance  of  the  Connec- 
ticut authorities.  It  was  done  by  somebody,  who  caused  a duplicate  of  the  chafter  to  be  made  on 
parchment,  and  the  original  to  be  concealed  in  the  hollow  of  the  famous  oak  tree,  several  months 
before  the  arrival  of  the  viceroy.  The  duplicate  was  placed  in  the  mahogany  box  of  the  original ; 
and  it  was  that  duplicate  that  was  placed  on  the  table,  and  carried  away  in  the  dark  by  Captain 
Wadsworth.  So,  if  Andros  had  secured  the  box,  he  would  not  have  secured  the  original  charter, 
but  a worthless  duplicate.  The  original  was  lying  in  safely  in  the  then  venerable  oak. 

The  fact  that  it  was  the  duplicate  that  Wadsworth  carried  away  at  that  time  is  attested  by  the 
same  colonial  records.  There  is  an  entry  in  the  Journal  in  1715,  stating  that  the  sum  of 
“ twenty  shillings  ” was  granted  to  Captain  Wadsworth  ” out  of  the  Colonial  treasury  ” as  a token 
of  their  grateful  remembrance  of  “such  faithful  and  good  service”  in  “securing  the  dupli- 
cate charter  of  the  colony  in  a very  troublesome  season.”  It  is  probable  that  Captain  Wads- 
worth took  the  charter  from  the  box,  had  a duplicate  made  of  it,  and  put  the  original  in  the 
hollow  oak,  from  which  it  was  taken  the  next  year.  According  to  the  colonial  records,  he  had 
the  duplicate  in  his  possession  in  1698. 


450 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  111. 


bly  was  convened;  Robert  Treat  was  chosen  governor,  and  Connecticut 
again  assumed  the  position  of  an  independent  colony.  The  tree  in  which 
the  document  was  hidden  was  ever  afterward  known  as  the  “ Charter  Oak.” 
It  remained  vigorous,  bearing  fruit  every  year  until  a little  after  midnight 
in  August,  1856,  when  it  was  prostrated  by  a heavy  storm  of  wind.  It  stood 
in  a vacant  lot  on  the  south  side  of  Charter  street,  a few  rods  from  Main 
street,  in  the  city  of  Hartford. 

About  six  years  after  Andros  was  outgeneraled  at  Hartford,  his  successor 


HIDING  THE  ORIGINAL  CHARTER  IN  THE  OAK. 


in  office,  Benjamin  Fletcher,  was  foiled,  at  the  same  place,  in  his  attempts  to 
exercise  control  over  the  militia  of  Connecticut.  The  exciting  scene  has 
been  recorded  in  the  Fifth  Chapter  of  the  Third  Book.  From  that  time, 
during  the  space  of  about  three-fourths  of  a century,  the  history  of  Connec- 
ticut is  intimately  woven  with  that  of  the  other  colonies  planted  in  America 
by  English  people.  The  inhabitants  of  Connecticut,  by  prudent  habits  and 
good  government,  steadily  increased  in  numbers  and  wealth.  They  went 


Chap.  XII. 


PLENITUDE  OF  RELIGIOUS  LIBERTY. 


451 


hand  in  hand  with  those  of  other  colonies  in  measures  for  the  promotion  of 
the  welfare  of  all ; and  when,  in  the  fullness  of  time,  the  provinces  were 
ripe  for  union,  rebellion  and  independence,  the  people  of  Connecticut  were 
foremost  in  their  eagerness  to  assert  their  rights  as  a free  people. 

We  have  seen  that  Rhode  Island  was  favored  with  a charter  from  Par- 
liament in  1644.  Yet  with  this  guaranty  of  strength,  it  was  not  free  from 
the  dangers  which  excessive  liberty  often  creates.  But  Rhode  Island  passed 
that  fiery  ordeal  almost  unscathed.  In  the  plenitude  of  freedom  there 
enjoyed,  each  individual  was,  in  a degree,  “ a law  unto  himself.”  In  religion 
and  politics  the  people  were  absolutely  free.  The  General  Assembly,  in  a 
code  of  laws  adopted  in  1647,  declared,  as  we  have  observed,  that  “ all  men 
might  walk  as  their  consciences  permitted  them — every  one  in  the  name  of 
his  God.”  Almost  every  religious  belief  might  have  been  encountered 
there;  “so  that  if  a man  lost  his  religious  opinions,  he  might  have  been  sure 
to  find  them  in  some  village  in  Rhode  Island.”  Society  was  in  a continual 
ferment,  but  the  agitation  was  healthful.  Town  meetings,  and  other  like 
gatherings  of  the  people,  were  stormy ; and  the  disputes  of  rivals  were 
sometimes  fierce,  but  never  brutal.  There  was  a remarkable  propriety  of 
conduct  on  all  occasions;  and  out  of  the  political  agitations  came  to  the 
surface  the  best  men  in  the  colony  to  administer  public  affairs.  Throughout 
the  whole  community,  so  independent  in  thought  and  action,  appeared  a 
healthier  religious  sentiment  than  in  Massachusetts,  where  the  people  were 
straight-laced  by  creeds  and  dogmas,  and  were  constantly  tempted  to  be 
hypocrites.  There  was  a high-toned  morality,  based  upon  that  religious 
sentiment,  which  preserved  society  from  many  dangers.  “ Our  popularitie,” 
says  one  of  their  records,  “shall  not,  as  some  conjecture  it  will,  prove  an 
anarchie,  and  so  a common  tirannie ; for  w e are  exceeding  desirous  to  pre- 
serve every  man  safe  in  his  person,  name,  and  estate.” 

A little  danger  menaced  the  commonwealth  when,  in  1651,  the  Execu- 
tive Council  of  State  in  England  granted  to  William  Coddington  a commis- 
sion for  governing  the  islands  within  the  limits  of  the  Rhode  Island  charter. 
This  threatened  a dismemberment  of  the  little  empire  and  its  absorption  by 
neighboring  colonies.  The  people  w'ere  alarmed.  Roger  Williams  and 
John  Clarke  hastened  to  England,  and  with  the  assistance  of  Sir  Henry 
Vane,  the  “sheet-anchor  of  Rhode  Island ’’—the  “noble  and  true  friend  to 
an  outcast  and  despised  people  ” — the  commission  was  recalled  and  the 
charter  given  by  Parliament  w'as  confirmed.  That  was  in  October,  1652. 
This  act  put  an  end  to  the  persevering  efforts  of  Massachusetts  to  absorb 
the  little  commonwealth. 

While  Roger  Williams  was  in  England,  he  partly  supported  himself  by 


452 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book.  111. 


teaching.  Me  then  enjoyed  the  intimate  friendship  of  Cromwell,  Hampden, 
Milton,  Sir  Henry  Vane,  and  other  distinguished  men.  On  his  return,  he 
was  again  hailed  with  joy  as  a benefactor;  and  in  the  autumn  of  1654,  he 
was  chosen  president  of  the  colony.  The  following  year,  Cromwell,  as 
ruler  of  England,  confirmed  the  charter  given  by  Parliament,  and  the  colony 
prospered  in  peace.  Religious  disputes  agitated  the  people;  but  reason, 
left  free  to  combat  error,  allowed  no  persecution. 

On  the  restoration  of  monarchy  in  1660,  the  inhabitants  of  Rhode  Island 
sent  to  Charles  an  address,  in  which  they  declared  their  loyalty  and  begged 
his  protection.  This  was  followed  by  a petition  for  a new  charter.  The 

prayer  was  granted;  and  in  July,  1663, 
the  king  issued  a patent  highly  demo- 
cratic in  its  general  features,  and  similar, 
in  every  respect,  to  the  one  granted 
to  Connecticut.  Benedict  Arnold  was 
chosen  the  first  governor  under  the  royal 
charter,  and  it  continued  to  be  the  su- 
preme law  of  the  land  for  the  period  of 
about  one  hundred  and  eighty  years.  In 
1842,  the  people  of  Rhode  Island  adopted 
a constitution,  and  the  power  of  the  old 
royal  charter  ceased. 

When,  in  1687,  Andros  demanded  the 
surrender  of  the  colonial  charters,  the 
inhabitants  of  Rhode  Island  instantly 
yielded.  When  the  order  for  the  seizure 
of  these  charters  was  first  made  known, 
the  Assembly  of  Rhode  Island  had  sent 
a most  loyal  address  to  the  king,  saying: 
“We  humbly  prostrate  ourselves,  our 
privileges,  our  all,  at  the  gracious  feet  of 
your  majesty,  with  an  entire  resolution  to  serve  you  with  faithful  hearts.” 
Andros,  therefore,  found  no  opposition  in  the  little  colony.  Within  a month 
after  his  -irrival  at  Boston,  he  proceeded  to  Rhode  Island,  where  he  was 
graciously  received.  He  formally  dissolved  the  Assembly;  broke  the  seal 
of  the  colony,  which  bore  the  figure  of  an  anchor  and  the  word  HOPE; 
admitted  five  of  the  inhabitants  into  his  legislative  council,  and  assumed  the 
functions  of  governor.  But  he  did  not  take  away  the  parchment  on  which 
the  charter  was  written. 

The  people  of  Rhode  Island  were  restive  under  the  petty  tyranny  of 


Chap.  XII. 


AFFAIRS  IN  NEW  JERSEY. 


453 


Andros;  and  when  they  heard  of  the  imprisonment  of  the  despot  at  Boston, 
in  the  spring  of  1689,  they  assembled  at  Newport,  resumed  popular  govern- 
ment under  the  old  charter,  and  began  a new  and  independent  political 
career.  From  that  time  until  the  enforced  union  of  the  colonies  for  mutual 
defence  at  the  breaking  out  of  the  French  and  Indian  war,  the  inhabitants 
of  Rhode  Island  always  bore  their  fair  share  in  defensive  efforts,  especially 
when  the  hostile  savages  hung  along  the  frontiers  of  New  England  and  New 
York  like  a dark  and  ill-omened  cloud.  The  history  of  that  commonwealth 
is  identified  with  that  of  all  New  England,  from  the  beginning  of  King 
William’s  war  soon  after  the  expulsion  of  Andros. 

Let  us  now  turn  again  to  a consideration  of  the  history  of  New  Jersey 
as  a colony.  We  have  traced  its  progress  from  the  period  of  its  first  settle- 
ments to  that  of  its  permanent  political  organization  as  a British  colony,  with 
a governor  and  council,  and  when  a cluster  of  four  houses  at  Elizabethtown 
were  dignified  with  the  title  of  a colonial  capital.  Agents  were  sent  to  New 
England  to  invite  settlers,  and  a company  from  New  Haven  were  soon 
seated  on  the  banks  of  the  Passaic.  Others  followed  ; and  when,  in  1668, 
the  first  legislative  assembly  met  at  Elizabethtown,  it  was  largely  made  up 
of  representatives  of  New  England  Puritanism.  The  fertility  of  the  soil-; 
the  salubrity  of  the  climate;  the  exemption  from  fear  of  Indian  hostilities 
and  other  manifest  advantages,  caused  a rapid  increase  in  the  population 
and  prosperity  of  the  province ; and  nothing  disturbed  the  general  serenity 
of  society  there  until  the  year  1670,  when  specified  quit-rents  of  a half- 
penny for  each  acre  of  land  was  demanded.  The  people  murmured.  Some 
of  them  had  purchased  their  land  of  the  Indians  before  the  proprietary 
government  was  established,  and  refused  to  pay  the  rent,  not  on  account  of 
its  amount,  but  because  it  was  an  unjust  tax  levied  without  their  consent. 

Disputes  concerning  rents  continued  almost  two  years,  and  the  province 
was  cast  into  confusion.  The  whole  people  combined  in  resistance  to  the 
payment  of  the  tax.  There  was  actual  rebellion;  and  in  May,  1672,  the 
disaffected  colonists  sent  deputies  to  a popular  Assembly  which  met  at 
Elizabethtown.  That  body  chose  a weak  and  dissolute  illegitimate  son  of 
one  of  the  proprietors  to  be  their  governor,  and  compelled  Philip  Carteret, 
the  proprietary  ruler,  to  vacate  his  chair  and  leave  the  province.  He  went 
to  England  for  more  authority ; and  while  the  proprietors  were  making 
preparations  to  recover  the  province  by  force  of  arms.  New  Jersey  and  all 
the  rest  of  the  territory  in  America  claimed  by  the  Duke  of  York  fell  into 
the  hands  of  the  Dutch,  with  whom  the  English  were  then  at  war.  That 
was  in  August,  1673. 

When,  fifteen  months  afterward,  these  territories  were  restored  to  the 


454 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  III. 


English,  and  the  duke  received  a new  charter  from  his  brother  the  king,  he 
appointed  Andros  governor  of  the  whole  domain.  Carteret  complained,  and 
his  authority  was  partly  restored  ; but  sufficient  was  reserved  to  give  Andros 
a pretext  for  asserting  his  authority  and  annoying  the  proprietors  and  the 
people. 

Lord  Berkeley  was  now  so  disgusted  by  the  losses  and  annoyances  whicli 
he  had  endured  in  connection  with  his  ownership  of  New  Jersey,  that  he 
sold  his  interest  in  the  province  to  John  Fenwick  and  Edward  Ryllinge, 
English  Friends  or  Quakers,  for  the  sum  of  five  thousand  dollars.  The 
tract  sold  to  these  Friends  was  in  the  western  part  of  the  province.  With 
some  emigrants,  mostly  of  the  Society  of  Friends,  Fenwick  sailed  for  his 
new  possessions.  They  settled  at  a spot  not  far  from  the  Delaware  River, 
which  they  named  Salem,  on  account  of  the  peaceful  aspect  of  the  country 
and  the  surrounding  Indians.  There,  with  the  peculiar  gravity  of  the  sect, 
Fenwick  and  his  two  daughters,  thirteen  men  (most  of  them  heads  of 
families)  and  one  woman,  the  wife  of  one  of  the  emigrants,  sat  in  silent 
worship  according  to  their  custom,  under  the  shadow  of  a great  tree,  with 
covered  heads  and  quiet  bodies,  on  the  ensuing  “ First  Day  ” after  their 
arrival.  Then  they  built  log  cabins  for  shelter,  and  so  began  a new  life  in 
the  wilds  of  New  Jersey. 

Byllinge  was  the  principal  proprietor,  but  soon  after  the  departure  of 
Fenwick,  heavy  losses  in  trade  made  him  a bankrupt,  and  his  interest  in 
New  Jersey  was  first  assigned  to  William  Penn  and  others  for  the  benefit  of 
his  creditors,  and  was  afterward  sold  to  them.  These  purchasers  and  others 
who  became  associated  with  them,  unwilling  to  maintain  a political  union 
with  other  parties,  bargained  with  Carteret  for  a division  of  the  province. 
This  was  done  in  July,  1676.  Carteret  retained  the  eastern  part  of  the 
province,  and  the  new  purchasers  held  the  western  part.  From  that  time 
until  they  were  united  and  became  a royal  province  in  1702,  these  divisions 
were  known  as  East  and  West  Jersey.  From  this  circumstance,  the  expres- 
sion “The  Jerseys,”  heard  in  our  day,  was  derived. 

The  proprietors  of  West  Jersey  gave  to  the  settlers,  who  were  mostly 
Friends  at  first,  a remarkably  liberal  constitution  of  government,  entitled 
“ The  concessions  and  agreements  of  the  proprietors,  freeholders,  and 
inhabitants  of  the  province  of  West  New  Jersey  in  America.”  The  follow- 
ing year  (1677)  more  than  four  hundred  Friends  came  from  England  and 
settled  below  the  Raritan.  Andros  required  them  to  acknowledge  his 
authority  as  the  representative  of  the  Duke  of  York.  They  refused,  and 
the  matter  was  referred  to  the  eminent  crown-lawyer  and  oriental  scholar. 
Sir  William  Jones,  for  adjudication.  Sir  William  decided  against  the  claims 


Chap.  XII. 


EAST  JERSEY. 


455 


of  the  duke,  who  submitted  to  the  decision,  released  both  provinces  from 
allegiance  to  him,  and  the  Jerseys  became  independent  of  foreign  control. 
The  first  popular  Assembly  in  West  Jersey  met  at  Salem  in  November, 
1 68 1,  and  adopted  a code  of  laws  for  the  government  of  the  people.  One 
of  these  laws  provided  that  in  all  criminal  cases,  excepting  treason,  murder 
and  theft,  the  aggrieved  party  should  have  power  to  pardon  the  offender. 

Carteret  died  late  in  1679.  The  trustees  of  his  American  estates  offered 
East  Jersey  for  sale.  It  was  bought  in  1682,  by  William  Penn  and  others, 
among  them  the  Earl  of  Perth,  the  friend  of  Robert  Barclay,  whom  the 
proprietors  appointed  governor 
of  the  domain  for  life.  Barclay 
was  an  eminent  young  Friend, 
whose  writings  have  ever  been 
held  in  high  estimation  by  his 
sect,  especially  his  “ Apology  for 
the  true  Christian  Divinity,  as  the 
same  is  held  forth  and  practised 
by  the  people  called  in  scorn 
Quakers,”  and  his  “Treatise  on 
Christian  Discipline.”  The  pur- 
chase was  made,  not  in  the  in- 
terest of  religion  or  liberty,  but 
as  a land  speculation.  Barclay 
governed  the  province  by  depu- 
ties until  his  death  in  1690,  when 
he  was  only  forty-two  years  of 
age. 

A large  number  of  Friends 
went  from  England  and  Scotland 
to  East  Jersey,  and  other  immi- 
grants flocked  in  from  Long 
Island,  to  find  repose  and  peace. 

They  soon  found  that  repose  was  not  to  be  enjoyed  by  lovers  of  freedom 
anywhere  under  royal  rule.  They  were  also  impressed  with  the  significance 
of  the  injunction:  “Put  not  your  trust  in  princes,”  for  James  the  king 
failed  to  keep  the  promises  of  James  the  duke,  and  they  were  compelled  to 
submit  to  the  tyranny  of  Andros.  When  that  detested  viceroy  was  driven 
from  the  country  in  1689,  the  Jerseys  were  left  without  a regular  civil  govern- 
ment, and  so  they  remained  several  years. 

Wearied  with  contentions  with  the  people  of  the  provinces  and  with  the 

30 


456 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  111. 


government  in  England,  and  annoyed  by  losses  in  unprofitable  speculations, 
the  proprietors  of  the  Jerseys  surrendered  them  to  the  crown  in  1702,  when 
Queen  Anne  was  the  reigning  British  monarch.  The  government  of  that 
domain  was  then  confided  to  Sir  Edward  Hyde  (Lord  Cornbury),  whose 
instructions  constituted  the  supreme  law  of  the  land.  He  was  then  governor 
of  New  York,  and  possessed  almost  absolute  legislative  and  executive 
control  within  the  jurisdiction  of  his  authority.  In  New  Jersey  the  people 
had  no  voice  in  the  judiciary  or  the  making  and  executing  of  laws  other 
than  recommendatory.  Liberty  of  conscience  was  granted  to  all  but  Roman 
Catholics,  but  the  bigoted  governor  always  showed  conspicuous  favors  to  the 
members  of  the  Church  of  England.  Under  the  rule  of  that  dishonest 
libertine,  the  people  of  New  Jersey  were  slaves.  Printing  was  prohibited  in 
the  province  except  by  royal  permission,  and  the  traffic  in  negro  slaves  was 
specially  encouraged. 

The  province  of  New  Jersey  remained  a dependency  of  New  York,  with 
a distinct  legislative  assembly  of  its  own,  until  the  year  1738,  when,  through 
the  efforts  of  Lewis  Morris,  its  chief  justice,  it  was  made  an  independent 
colony,  and  so  continued  until  the  war  for  independence.  Mr.  Morris 
was  commissioned  the  first  governor  after  the  province  had  gained  its  free- 
dom from  New  York.  He  was  the  son  of  an  officer  in  Cromwell’s  army 
who,  at  about  the  year  1672,  settled  on  a farm  of  three  thousand  acres  on 
the  Harlem  River,  New  York,  which  was  named  Morrisania. 

The  last  of  the  royal  governors  of  New  Jersey  was  William  Franklin,  son 
of  Dr.  Benjamin  Franklin,  who  was  appointed,  in  1763,  and  closed  his  official 
career  in  the  summer  of  1776,  when  he  was  deposed  by  the  Continental 
Congress,  and  sent  under  guard  to  Connecticut,  where  he  was  released  on 
parole  and  sailed  for  England.  He  died  there  in  1813. 


CHAPTER  XIII. 


WILLIAM  PENN  IN  PENNSYLVANIA — GROWTH  OF  THAT  PROVINCE — PENN  GOES  TO  ENGLAND — HIS 
TROUBLES  THERE — HE  RETURNS  TO  AMERICA — GIVES  A THIRD  AND  MORE  LIBERAL  CHARTER 
TO  THE  COLONISTS — HIS  DEATH,  AND  THE  FATE  OF  THE  PROVINCE — ATTEMPTS  TO  FORCE 
THE  “ FUNDAMENTAL  CONSTITUTIONS  ” ON  THE  CAROLINAS — EFFECTS  OF  NAVIGATION  LAWS 
— REBELLION  IN  NORTH  CAROLINA — ARCHDALE  MADE  GOVERNOR  OF  BOTH  CAROLINAS — 
SOCIAL  CONDITION  OF  NORTH  CAROLINA — SETTLEMENTS  AND  POLITICAL  TROUBLES  IN  SOUTH 
CAROLINA — GROWTH  OF  THE  COLONY — THE  HUGUENOTS  AND  THEIR  HISTORY — REBELLION 
IN  SOUTH  CAROLINA  — THE  GOOD  DEEDS  OF  JOHN  ARCHDALE. 

WHEN  William  Penn,  with  the  help  of  Thomas  Holme,  the  sur- 
veyor, laid  out  the  city  of  Philadelphia  at  the  close  of  1682,  he 
caused  the  boundaries  of  the  streets  to  be  marked  on  the 
trunks  of  the  chestnut,  walnut,  locust,  spruce,  pine  and  other  forest  trees 
that  covered  the  land.  Several  streets  of  that  city  yet  bear  the  names  of 
those  trees,  then  given  to  them.  The  growth  of  the  new  town  was  rapid. 
Within  a year  after  the  surveyor  had  finished  his  task,  almost  a hundred 
houses  were  erected  there,  and  the  Indians  came  daily  with  the  spoils  of  the 
forest  as  presents  for  “ Father  Penn,”  as  they  delighted  to  call  the  proprietor. 

In  March  following,  the  new  city  was  honored  by  the  gathering  there  of 
the  second  Assembly  of  the  province,  when  Penn  offered  to  the  people, 
through  their  representatives,  a new  charter.  It  was  so  liberal  in  all  its 
provisions  that  when  the  question,  “ Shall  we  accept  the  new  constitution 
or  adhere  to  the  old  one?”  came  up  in  that  body,  there  was  a solid  vote  in 
favor  of  the  new  one.  It  constituted  a representative  republican  govern- 
ment, with  free  religious  toleration  and  having  justice  for  its  foundation ; 
and  the  proprietor,  unlike  those  of  other  provinces,  surrendered  to  the 
people  his  chartered  rights  in  the  appointment  of  officers.  From  the 
beginning,  the  happiness  and  prosperity  of  his  people  appeared  to  be  upper- 
most in  the  heart  and  mind  of  William  Penn.  It  was  this  happy  relation 
between  the  proprietor  and  the  people,  and  security  against  Indian  raids, 
that  made  Pennsylvania  far  outstrip  her  sister  colonies  in  rapidity  of  settle- 
ment and  permanent  prosperity. 

Late  in  1682,  a small  house  was  erected  on  the  site  of  Philadelphia  for 
the  use  of  Penn.  It  survived  until  our  day,  occupying  a place  in  Letitia 


458 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  III. 


Court,  between  Front  and  Second  streets.  There  he  assisted  in  fashioning 
those  excellent  laws  which  gave  a high  character  to  Pennsylvania  from  the 
beginning.  Among  other  wise  enactments,  it  was  decreed  that,  to  prevent 
lawsuits,  three  arbitrators,  to  be  called  peace-makers,  should  be  appointed 
by  the  county  courts,  to  hear  and  determine  small  differences  between  man 
and  man ; that  children  should  be  taught  some  useful  trade ; that  factors 
wronging  their  employees  should  make  satisfaction,  and  one-third  over ; that 
all  causes  for  irreligion  and  vulgarity  should  be  repressed ; and  that  no  man 
should  be  molested  for  his  religious  opinions.  They  also  decreed  that  the 
days  of  the  week  and  the  months  of  the  year  “ shall  be  called  as  in  Scrip- 
ture, and  not  by  heathen  names  (as  are  vulgarly  used),  as  y®  First,  Second 
and  Third  dais  of  y®  week,  and  First,  Second  and  Third  months  of  y“  year, 
beginning  with  y®  day  called  Sunday,  and  y^  month  called  March,”  so 
beginning  the  year,  as  of  old,  with  the  first  spring  month.  At  about  the 
same  time  Pennsylvania  was  divided  into  three  counties — Bucks,  Chester 
and  Philadelphia ; and  the  annexed  territory  was  also  divided  into  three 
counties — New  Castle,  Kent  and  Sussex — known  for  a longtime  afterward  as 
the  “ Three  Lower  Counties  on  the  Delaware.” 

In  the  summer  of  1684,  Penn  returned  to  England.  He  left  the  govern- 
ment of  the  province,  during  his  absence,  in  the  care  of  five  members  of  the 
council  and  Thomas  Lloyd  as  president,  who  held  the  Great  Seal.  His 
mission  in  America  had  been  one  of  solid  triumph  over  the  hoary  prejudices 
of  feudalism  and  the  selfish  instincts  of  man.  His  wise  and  beneficent 
conduct  had  given  wings  to  a report  that  William  Penn  had  opened,  in  a 
beautiful  land  beyond  the  ocean,  an  asylum  to  the  good  and  oppressed  of 
every  nation  and  creed.  These  and  others  came  from  Scandinavia,  the 
borders  of  the  Rhine,  and  from  England,  Wales,  Scotland  and  Ireland,  to 
plant  quiet  homes  in  the  dominions  of  the  “ Quaker  King.”  His  “ City  of 
Brotherly  Love  ” had,  in  the  course  of  two  years,  grown  more  rapidly  than 
had  the  city  of  New  York  in  almost  half  a century.  At  the  close  of  the 
year  following  his  departure  for  England,  it  contained  six  hundred  houses ; 
schools  were  established,  and  William  Bradford,  who  had  landed  where 
Philadelphia  was  afterward  laid  out,  had  set  up  a printing-press  there.  His 
“Almanack  for  the  Year  of  the  Christian’s  Account,  1687,”  was  printed 
there  on  a broadside  or  single  sheet,  with  twelve  compartments,  the  year 
beginning  with  March.  Looking  upon  the  result  of  his  work,  Penn,  with 
righteous  exultation,  wrote  to  Lord  Halifax:  “I  must,  without  vanity,  say 
I have  led  the  greatest  colony  into  America  that  ever  any  man  did  upon 
private  credit,  and  the  most  prosperous  beginnings  that  ever  were  in  it  are 
to  be  found  among  us.”  Penn  bade  the  colonists  farewell,  with  the  most 


Chap.  XIII. 


PENN’S  TROUBLES. 


459 


cheering  forebodings  for  the  future,  saying : “ My  love  and  my  life  are  to 
and  with  you,  and  no  water  can  quench  it,  nor  distance  bring  it  to  an  end. 
I have  been  with  you,  cared  over  you,  and  served  you  with  unfeigned 
love ; and  you  are  beloved  of  me  and  dear  to  me  beyond  utterance.  I bless 
you  in  the  name  and  power  of  the  Lord,  and  may  God  bless  you  with  his 
righteousness,  peace  and  plenty  all  the  land  over.”  . “ And  thou, 

Philadelphia,  the  virgin  settlement  of  this  province,  my  soul  prays  to  God 
for  thee,  that  thou  mayest  stand  in  the  day  of  trial,  and  that  thy  children 
may  be  blessed.”  The  blessings  of  the  whole  people  rested  upon  the  good 
man,  when,  on  a bright  day  in  August,  the  vessel  that  bore  him  to  England 
weighed  anchor  at  near  the  foot  of  Chestnut  street. 

Four  months  after  Penn’s  return  to  England,  Charles  the  Second  died, 
and  his  brother  James  ascended  the  throne.  Then  began  a period  of  great 
theological  and  political  excitement  in  England,  in  the  perils  of  which  Penn 
became  involved.  He  and  the  new  king  had  long  been  personal  friends ; 
and  through  Penn’s  influence,  twelve  hundred  persecuted  Friends  were 
released  from  prison,  in  1686.  When  it  was  seen  that  James  was  under  the 
powerful  influence  of  the  Jesuits,  his  Quaker  friend  was  suspected  of  being 
one  of  them;  and  after  the  revolution  that  drove  James  from  the  throne, 
he  was  arrested  three  times,  on  a false  charge  of  treason,  and  as  often 
acquitted.  The  last  time  was  in  1690.  Meanwhile  there  had  been  great 
political  and  theological  commotions  in  Pennsylvania,  and  in  April,  1691,  the 
Three  Lower  Counties  on  the  Delaware,  offended  at  the  action  of  the 
council  at  Philadelphia,  withdrew  from  the  Union,  and  Penn  yielded  to  the 
secessionists  so  far  as  to  appoint  a separate  deputy.governor  over  them. 

In  consequence  of  representations  which  came  from  Pennsylvania,  the 
monarchs  William  and  Mary  deprived  Penn  of  his  rights  as  governor  of  his 
province,  in  1692,  and  the  control  of  the  domain  was  placed  in  the  hands  of 
Governor  Fletcher,  of  New  York,  who,  in  the  spring  of  1693,  reunited  the 
Delaware  counties  to  the  parent  province.  Fletcher  appeared  at  the  head 
of  the  council  at  Philadelphia  on  Monday,  the  15th  of  May,  with  William 
Markham,  Penn’s  deputy,  as  lieutenant-governor. 

Powerful  friends  interceded  with  King  William  for  the  restoration  of 
Penn’s  rights.  He  was  called  before  the  Privy  Council  to  answer  certain 
accusations,  when  his  innocence  was  proven.  A few  months  afterward  his 
rights  were  all  restored.  That  was  in  the  summer  of  1694.  His  fortune 
had  been  wasted,  and  he  lingered  in  England,  under  the  pressure  of  com- 
parative poverty,  until  1699,  when,  with  his  daughter,  and  his  second  wife, 
Hannah  Callowhill,  he  sailed  to  Philadelphia.  Meanwhile  his  colony  under 
his  old  deputy,  William  Markham,  had  asserted  their  right  to  self-government, 


460 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  III. 


and  made  laws  for  themselves.  Penn  found  them  prosperous,  but  clamorous 
for  political  privileges  guaranteed  to  them  by  law.  Regarding  their  demands 
as  reasonable,  he  gave  them  a new  constitution  or  frame  of  government,  in 
November,  1701,  more  liberal  in  its  concessions  than  former  ones,  and  per- 
fectly satisfactory  to  all.  Finding  the  people  of  the  “Territories,”  or  Three 
Lower  Counties,  restive  under  the  forced  union  with  Pennsylvania,  he  made 
provision  for  their  permanent  separation  in  legislation,  in  1702  ; and  the  first 
independent  legislature  in  Delaware  was  assembled  at  New  Castle  in  1703. 


JOHN  WINTHROP. 


WILLIAM  III. 


EDWARD  WINSLOW. 

JOHN  LOCKE. 


Although  Pennsylvania  and  Delaware  ever  afterward  continued  to  have 
separate  legislatures,  they  were  under  the  same  governor  until  the  Revolu- 
tion in  1776. 

While  Penn  was  in  America,  tidings  came  that  measures  were  pending 
before  the  Privy  Council,  for  bringing  all  of  the  proprietary  governments 
under  the  crown.  Penn  had  come  to  Philadelphia  to  live  and  die  there ; 
and  had  built  a fine  brick  house  to  reside  in,  which  stood  on  the  corner  of 


Chap.  XIII. 


FUNDAMENTAL  CONSTITUTIONS. 


461 


Second  street  and  Norris  alley,  until  a few  years  ago.  But  the  news  from 
England  determined  him  to  return  to  his  native  country  to  defend  his 
rights.  He  did  so  late  in  1701,  and  succeeded.  He  never  returned  to 
America.  Harassed  and  wearied  by  business  connected  with  his  province, 
he  was  making  arrangements  in  1712  to  sell  it  for  sixty  thousand  dollars, 
when  he  was  prostrated  by  paralysis.  He  survived  the  first  shock  six  years, 
when  he  died,  leaving  his  estates  in  America  to  his  three  sons.  His  family 
governed  Pennsylvania,  as  proprietors,  until  the  Revolution  made  it  an 
independent  State  in  1776.  Meanwhile  the  province  had  sustained  its  share 
of  the  burden  of  mutual  defence  with  its  sister  colonies  during  the  troubles 
with  the  French  and  Indians. 

Let  us  now  return  to  a consideration  of  the  colonial  history  of  the  Caro- 
linas  from  the  formation  of  the  “Fundamental  Constitutions”  by  Locke 
and  Cooper  (afterward  Lord  Shaftesbury)  for  the  government  of  the  colonists 
of  those  regions,  until  the  period  of  the  old  war  for  independence. 

We  have  observed  that  the  scheme  for  a splendid  government  was  com- 
pleted in  1669.  The  “constitutions”  were  signed  in  March,  1670,  and  were 
highly  lauded  in  England  as  forming  the  wisest  scheme  for  human  govern- 
ment ever  devised.  Monk,  duke  of  Albemarle,  was  created  Palatine  or 
viceroy  for  the  new  empire,  who  was  to  display  the  state  parade  of  his  office, 
with  landgraves,  barons,  lords  of  manor,  caciques,  and  courts  of  admiralty 
and  heraldry,  among  the  scattered  settlers  in  the  pine  forests  living  in  log- 
cabins  with  the  Indians.  The  idea  seems  too  ludicrous  to  have  been 
seriously  entertained.  Yet  it  was  entertained  ; and,  so  far  as  the  proprietors 
were  concerned,  this  splendid  government  was  established.  But  the  simple 
settlers  had  something  to  say;  and  when  the  governor  of  the  Northern  or 
Albemarle  county  colony  attempted  to  introduce  the  new  government,  they 
said,  “No,”  with  peculiar  emphasis,  as  the  question  was  forced  upon  them, 
“ Will  you  accept  it  ? ” They  had  a form  of  government  of  their  own  far 
better  adapted  to  their  social  circumstances  than  the  one  sent  from  England, 
and  they  resolved  to  adhere  to  it. 

The  attempts  to  enforce  obedience  to  the  new  form  of  government ; the 
oppressive  taxation  imposed  upon  the  people,  and  especially  the  commercial 
restrictions  authorized  by  the  English  navigation  laws,  produced  wide-spread 
discontent.  This  was  fostered  by  refugees  from  Virginia,  who  had  been 
implicated  in  “ Bacon’s  Rebellion,”  and  who  sought  personal  safety  among 
the  people  below  the  Roanoke.  These  refugees  scattered  broadcast  over  a 
generous  soil  the  germinal  ideas  of  popular  freedom ; and  successful  oppres- 
sion was  made  difficult,  if  not  impossible. 

The  whole  State  of  North  Carolina  did  not,  at  that  time,  contain  quite 


462 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  III. 


four  thousand  inhabitants.  They  carried  on  a feeble  trade  in  tobacco,  maize 
and  fat  cattle,  with  the  merchants  of  New  England,  whose  little  ves.sels 
brought  in  exchange  those  articles  of  foreign  production  which  the  settlers 
could  not  otherwise  procure.  English  cupidity  envied  them  their  privileges, 
and  the  navigation  laws  of  1672  were  put  in  force.  An  agent  of  the  govern- 
ment appeared,  who  demanded  a penny  for  every  pound  of  tobacco  sent  to 
New  England.  The  colonists  resisted  the  levy.  The  tax-gatherer  was  rude, 
and  had  frequent  personal  collisions  with  the  people.  On  one  occasion  he 
attempted  to  drive  away  a steer  in  satisfaction  of  a demand  for  the  tax  on 


THE  TAX-GATHERER  BEATEN  OFF. 


the  tobacco  of  a planter,  which  had  just  been  shipped  for  Boston,  when  the 
sturdy  wife  of  the  yeoman  beat  him  off  with  a mop-stick,  and  saved  the 
animal  from  the  tax-gatherer. 

Finally,  the  exasperated  people,  led  by  John  Culpepper,  a refugee  from 
the  Southern  or  Carteret  county  colony,  seized  the  governor  and  the  public 


Chap.  XIII. 


A BAD  GOVERNOR  PUNISHED. 


463 


funds ; imprisoned  him  and  six  of  his  councillors ; called  a new  represen- 
tative Assembly,  and  appointed  a chief  magistrate  and  judges.  That  was 
in  December,  1677.  For  two  years  the  colonists  conducted  the  affairs  of 
their  government  without  any  foreign  control.  Meanwhile  Culpepper,  whom 
the  royalists  denounced  as  an  “ ill  man,”  one  who  merited  “ hanging  for 
endeavoring  to  set  the  people  to  plunder  the  rich,”  conscious  of  his  integrity, 
went  boldly  to  England  to  plead  the  cause  of  the  colonists.  There  he  was 
arrested,  just  as  he  was  re-embarking  for  America,  on  a charge  of  treason, 
for  which  he  was  tried  and  acquitted.  Returning  to  North  Carolina,  he  was 
appointed  surveyor-general  of  the  province ; and  in  1680  he  was  employed  in 
laying  out  the  city  of  Charleston  in  South  Carolina. 

The  Northern  colony  now  enjoyed  repose  for  awhile,  until  the  arrival  of 
Seth  Sothel  as  governor.  He  had  purchased  the  share  of  Clarendon  in  the 
soil  of  the  provinces,  and  was  sent  to  administer  government  there.  On  his 
voyage  he  was  captured  by  Algerine  pirates,  but  escaped,  and  reached  North 
Carolina  in  1683.  Avaricious,  extortionate,  cruel,  without  the  abilities  of  a 
statesman  and  mean-spirited — “ the  dark  shades  of  his  character  not  relieved 
by  a single  virtue  ” — he  sought  the  government  with  the  hope  of  winning  a 
fortune  thereby.  His  advent  disturbed  the  public  tranquillity.  He  plun- 
dered the  people,  cheated  the  proprietors,  and  on  all  occasions  seems  to 
have  prostituted  his  delegated  power  to  purposes  of  private  gain.  After 
enduring  his  misrule  for  about  six  weeks,  the  people  rose  in  rebellion,  seized 
the  governor,  and  were  about  to  send  him  to  England  to  answer  their  accu- 
sations before  the  proprietors,  when  he  asked  to  be  tried  by  the  colonial 
Assembly.  That  body  were  evidently  more  merciful  than  his  associates  in 
England  would  have  been,  for  they  found  him  guilty  and  sentenced  him  to 
only  one  year’s  banishment  and  perpetual  disqualification  for  the  office  of 
governor.  Sothel  then  withdrew  to  the  Southern  colony,  where  we  shall 
meet  him  presently. 

Sothel’s  successor,  Philip  Ludwell,  was  an  energetic  and  honest  man. 
By  the  exercise  of  wisdom  and  justice,  he  soon  restored  order  and  good 
feeling  in  the  colony.  He  was  succeeded  by  other  honorable  men,  among 
them  the  good  John  Archdale,  a member  of  the  Society  of  Friends,  who 
came  in  1695  as  governor  of  the  two  colonies.  His  administration  was  a 
blessing.  The  people  of  North  Carolina,  over  whom  he  ruled,  were  almost 
as  free  in  their  opinions  and  actions,  as  the  air  they  breathed.  There  were 
few  restraints  of  any  kind,  legal  or  moral,  yet  the  people  were  generally 
enemies  to  violence,  and  gentle-tempered.  They  were  widely  scattered, 
with  not  a city  or  town,  and  scarcely  a hamlet  in  their  sylvan  domain. 
There  were  no  roads  but  bridle-paths  from  house  to  house,  and  these  were 


464 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  III. 


indicated  by  notches  cut  in  trees.  There  was  no  settled  minister  of  the 
gospel  among  them  until  1703.  The  first  church  erected  in  North  Carolina 
appeared  in  1705.  No  building  for  a court-house  was  constructed  until 
1722;  and  it  was  not  until  1754^ — about  a hundred  years  after  the  first 
permanent  settlement  was  made  in  the  region  of  the  Chowan — that  a 
printing-press  was  set  up  in  the  province. 

The  Southern  or  Carteret  County  colony  was,  meanwhile,  steadily 
advancing  in  population  and  wealth.  The  settlers  there,  perceiving  the 
fatal  objections  to  the  “Fundamental  Constitutions”  as  a plan  of  govern- 
ment for  their  colony,  did  not  attempt  conforming  thereto,  but  established 
a more  simple  government  adapted  to  their  condition.  It  was  crude. 
Under  it  the  first  legislative  assembly  of  South  Carolina  convened  in  the 
spring  of  1672,  at  the  place  on  the  Ashley  River  where  the  colony  was  first 
seated.  In  that  body,  jarring  political,  social  and  theological  interests  and 
opinions  produced  passionate  debates  and  violent  discord.  There  was  a 
Proprietary  party  and  a People’s  party;  a High  Church  party  and  a Dis- 
senter’s party,  each  bigoted  and  resolute.  At  times  debates  were  so  angrily 
carried  on,  that  members  almost  came  to  blows ; and  it  was  a relief  to  the 
people  when  the  Assembly  adjourned,  for  it  seemed  to  be  a nest  out  of 
which  might  come  the  rapacious  vulture  of  civil  war,  that  would  be  perilous 
in  the  extreme,  at  that  time,  when  surrounding  savages  were  evidently 
hostile.  The  danger  from  these  foes  finally  healed  the  dissensions  among 
the  settlers.  Moved  by  the  instinct  of  self-preservation,  they  joined  in  a 
successful  warfare  upon  the  Indians,  who  had  begun  to  plunder  the  planta- 
tions of  grain  and  cattle,  and  to  menace  the  lives  of  the  colonists.  The 
savages  were  subdued  in  1680,  and  those  who  were  made  captive  were  sent 
to  the  West  Indies  and  sold  for  slaves.  Then  Old  Town,  as  their  first  place 
of  settlement  was  called,  was  abandoned,  and  on  Oyster  Point,  as  we  have 
observed,  was  founded  the  city  of  Charleston,  the  future  capital  of  the 
colony.  It  was  settled  chiefly  by  the  English,  for  the  Dutch  and  others 
.spread  over  the  country  along  the  Edisto  and  Santee  rivers.  Immigrants 
from  different  parts  of  Europe  rapidly  swelled  the  population  of  Charleston 
and  its  vicinity,  and  aspirations  for  political  independence  were  manifested 
there  at  that  early  day. 

A second  popular  Assembly  met  at  Charleston  in  1682.  It  was  more 
harmonious  than  the  first.  Wise  laws  were  framed,  and  a more  tolerant 
religious  spirit  prevailed.  Immigrants  flowed  in  with  a full  and  continuous 
stream.  Families  came  from  Ireland,  Scotland  and  Holland  ; and  when  the 
edict  of  Nantes,  which  secured  toleration  to  Protestants  in  France,  was 
revoked,  a large  number  of  Huguenots  fled  from  their  country,  and  many 


INDIANS  PLUNDERING  SOUTH  CAROLINA  PLANTATIONS. 


Chap.  XIII. 


THE  HUGUENOTS  IN  FRANCE. 


465 


sought  an  asylum  in  the  Carolinas.  The  traditionary  hatred  of  the  English 
for  the  French  was  shown  at  this  time.  For  full  ten  years  these  French 
refugees  were  denied  the  privileges  of  citizenship  in  the  land  of  their 
adoption. 

Meanwhile  a little  colony  of  ten  Scotch  families  who  had  fled  from 
persecution  in  their  native  land,  and  led  by  the  Presbyterian  Lord  Cardross, 
landed  at  Port  Royal  on  the  coast  of  South  Carolina,  and  proceeded  to  plant 
a settlement  there  in  1682.  The  existence  of  that  little  colony  was  brief. 
The  Spaniards  claimed  Port  Royal  as  a dependency  of  St.  Augustine ; and 
in  1686,  during  the  absence  of  Cardross  in  Britain,  they  attacked  and  dis- 
persed his  colony  and  laid  waste  their  property.  Some  of  them  returned  to 
Scotland,  and  others  joined  the  colony  between  the  Edisto  and  Santee  rivers. 

The  Huguenots,  who  infused  warm  blood  into  the  veins  of  the  Southern 
colony,  and  carried  the  sunshine  of  their  buoyant  natures  into  other  Ameri- 
can provinces,  deserve  more  than  a passing  notice  here.  We  have  already 
considered  their  forlorn  condition  in  the  time  of  Coligni,  a hundred  years 
earlier.  The  decree  of  Henry  the  Fourth,  issued  from  Nantes  in  1598, 
giving  them  free  toleration  within  his  dominions,  secured  them  from  severe 
persecution.  They  had  prospered,  and  had  become,  as  a body,  the  best 
citizens  of  France. 

When  the  profligate  Louis  the  Fourteenth  approached  old  age,  he  became 
the  slave  of  a fascinating  woman,  widow  of  the  comic  poet  Scarron,  who  is 
better  known  in  history  as  Madame  de  Maintenon.  She  was  then  fifty  years 
of  age,  but  was  still  beautiful,  graceful  and  witty,  and  wise  and  discreet  in 
all  her  ways.  The  king,  then  forty-eight,  fascinated  by  the  charms  of  her 
mind  and  person,  married  her  secretly.  From  that  time  she  fashioned  his 
future  life.  She  had  been  a Calvinist,  but  was  now  a devoted  daughter  of 
the  Church  of  Rome.  When  remorse  for  past  sins  clouded  the  mind  of  the 
king,  she  shed  the  light  of  religious  consolation  into  its  darkened  recesses. 
He  would  pass  whole  days  with  her  alone  in  a library  of  the  palace,  listening 
to  her  charming  conversation  or  her  reading  from  books  of  devotion.  As 
amends  for  past  misconduct,  she  persuaded  him  to  take  measures  for  the 
conversion  of  the  Huguenots  and  to  win  them  back  to  the  Church  of  Rome. 

This  work  was  begun  in  earnest,  by  every  species  of  bribery,  and  every 
means  of  coercion  excepting  actual  personal  violence.  These  Huguenots 
were  driven  from  all  public  employments,  and  were  reinstated  only  upon  the 
condition  of  entering  the  church  as  communicants.  They  were  persecuted 
by  being  subjected  to  all  kinds  of  disabilities,  social  and  political,  and  finding 
relief  only  in  a profession  of  the  Romish  faith.  These  measures  operated 
powerfully,  and,  in  a degree,  successfully.  It  was  perceived  that  the  surest 


466 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  III. 


road  to  popular  favor  was  by  converting  Huguenots,  and  Louvois,  the 
Minister  of  War,  determined  to  outdo  Madame  de  Maintenon  in  this  work, 
by  the  use  of  soldiers,  whom  he  quartered  on  the  Huguenots  with  orders  to 
torment  them  in  every  possible  way  short  of  personal  violence.  These 
Protestants  were  forbidden  to  leave  France,  and  so,  like  hunted  deer  driven 
to  close  quarters,  they  were  dreadfully  worried  by  the  hounds.  At  length, 
following  the  advice  of  Madame  de  Maintenon,  the  king  revoked  the  tolerant 
edict  of  Henry,  and  the  Huguenots  were  exposed  to  the  unbridled  passions 
of  the  soldiery  and  the  intolerance  of  religious  bigots.  So,  Louis  hoped  he 
had  gained  the  favor  of  Heaven  and  secured  the  salvation  of  his  own  soul. 

The  sufferings  of  the  Huguenots 
were  now  horrible.  The  most  cruel 
torments  were  used  to  “ convert  ” 
them.  It  is  said  that  full  ten  thou- 
sand of  them  perished  at  the  stake 
and  other  places  of  torture,  for  con- 
science sake.  In  the  face  of  vigor- 
ous measures  for  preventing  emigra- 
tion, full  five  hundred  thousand  of 
these  useful  citizens,  numbering 
multitudes  of  skilled  mechanics,  fled 
from  their  country,  and  so  im- 
poverished the  kingdom.  They 
created  Huguenot  villages  in  Ger- 
many. They  swelled  the  army  of 
William  wherewith  to  win  the  throne 
of  England.  They  filled  a whole 
suburb  of  London,  and  introduced 
the  art  of  silk-weaving  into  England. 
Some  went  to  the  Cape  of  Good 
Hope,  and  many  of  them  sought 
peaceful  homes  among  the  American  colonists.  They  were  welcomed  every- 
where, and  became  blessings  to  every  community  among  whom  they  settled. 
Many  families  were  seated  in  New  York  and  other  colonies ; but  the  warmer 
climate  of  the  Carolinas  was  more  congenial  to  these  children  of  sunny 
France.  They  gave  some  of  the  best  blood  to  the  American  colonies;  and 
their  descendants  have  borne  a conspicuous  part  in  building  up  our  free 
Republic. 

The  South  Carolinians  resisted  all  attempts  to  make  them  submit  to  the 
authority  of  the  “Fundamental  Constitutions.”  Annoyed  by  persistent 


LOUIS  THE  FOURTEENTH. 


Chap.  XIII. 


TURBULENCE  IN  THE  CAROLINAS. 


467 


efforts  to  compel  them  to  accept  that  form  of  government,  they  felt  disposed 
to  cast  off  all  allegiance  to  the  proprietors  and  the  mother  country.  At 
that  crisis,  John  Colleton,  one  of  the  owners,  was  appointed  governor  of  the 
province,  with  full  powers  to  bring  the  people  into  submission.  That  was 
in  1686.  His  administration  of  four  years  was  a very  turbulent  one. 
Finally,  his  continual  collisions  with  the  people  drove  them  into  open 
rebellion.  They  seized  the  public  records ; imprisoned  the  secretary  of  the 
province ; called  a new  Assembly,  and  defined  the  power  of  the  governor. 
The  latter,  pleading  the  danger  of  an  impending  invasion  of  Indians  or 
Spaniards,  made  it  a pretext  for  calling  out  the  militia,  with  whom  he  hoped 
to  suppress  the  insurrection.  He  declared  the  province  to  be  under  martial- 
law,  and  proposed  to  rule  by  its  vigorous  code. 

The  militia  were  a part  of  the  people,  and  no  troops  appeared  at  the  call 
of  the  governor.  His  act  greatly  exasperated  the  colonists.  He  was 
impeached,  and  banished  from  the  province  by  the  Assembly,  in  1690.  The 
Revolution  in  England  at  the  same  time  was  initiated  in  miniature  in  South 
Carolina. 

During  the  turbulence  at  near  the  close  of  Colleton’s  administration,  Seth 
Sothel  arrived  from  North  Carolina,  pursuant  to  his  sentence  of  banishment. 
He  espoused  the  cause  of  the  people  against  the  proprietors,  and  the  former, 
in  the  moment  of  their  anger,  unwisely  chose  him  to  be  their  governor. 
Their  poor  judgment  was  rebuked,  and  the  people  were  punished  for  this 
rash  act  by  the  conduct  of  the  new  governor.  While  he  followed  the 
popular  will  in  opposing  the  claims  of  the  proprietors  to  political  domination, 
he  plundered  the  people,  trampled  upon  their  dearest  rights,  and  ruled  them 
with  insolence  and  undisguised  tyranny.  His  misrule  was  endured  for  about 
two  years,  when  the  people  heartily  seconded  the  measures  of  his  fellow- 
proprietors  for  his  removal.  When  they  heard  of  his  usurpations,  they  sent 
him  letters  of  recall,  with  an  order  from  the  king  to  appear  in  England  to 
answer  charges  of  disloyalty  and  other  grave  offences.  Sothel  Avas  com- 
pelled to  retire  from  the  office  in  1692,  when  he  withdrew  to  North  Carolina, 
where  he  died  two  years  afterward.  It  was  during  the  administration  of 
Sothel  that  the  Huguenots  in  South  Carolina  were  as  fully  enfranchised,  or 
granted  the  liberty  of  citizens,  as  if  they  had  been  born  on  the  soil.  This 
act  of  enfranchisement  was  repealed  in  1697. 

Colonel  Philip  Ludwell,  of  Virginia,  and  then  governor  of  North  Caro- 
lina, as  we  have  seen — a man  wholly  unconnected  with  the  interests  of  the 
province — was  appointed  the  successor  of  Sothel.  When  the  people  found 
that  a part  of  his  mission  was  to  restore  the  authority  of  the  proprietors 
and  impose  upon  them  the  absurd  “ Fundarriental  Constitutions,”  they  were 


468 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  III. 


restive  under  the  rule  of  even  so  good  a man  as  he.  He  was  authorized  to 
inquire  into  grievances,  but  had  no  power  to  redress  them ; and  after  a brief 
and  unhappy  administration,  he  gladly  retired  from  the  chair  of  state. 

The  proprietors  were  now  satisfied  that  they  could  never  impose  upon 
the  people  of  the  Carolinas  the  form  of  government  framed  by  Locke  and 
Cooper,  and  after  a trial  of  about  twenty  years,  the  scheme  was  abandoned. 
They  sent  good  John  Archdale,  as  we  have  seen,  to  govern  both  provinces 
under  more  simple  forms  of  government  prepared  by  the  people  them- 
selves. His  administration  was  short,  but  highly  beneficial.  He  healed 
dissensions ; established  equitable  laws,  and  with  the  spirit  of  a true 
Christian  he  set  a true  Christian  example  of  toleration  and  humanity. 
He  made  no  distinction  on  account  of  religious  creeds  in  the  choice  of 
his  council.  He  cultivated  friendly  intercourse  with  the  surrounding 
, Indians,  and  ransomed  Indian  captives  who  were  exposed  for  sale  as 
slaves.  Chiefs  of  tribes  formerly  hostile  were  sometimes  seen  at  his  table  ; 
and  two  Indian  maidens  were  paid  servants  in  his  family.  With  the  Span- 
iards at  St.  Augustine  he  cultivated  friendly  relations,  for  the  liberal  spirit 
of  the  Quaker  could  respect  the  faith  of  the  Roman  Catholic.  With  keen 
foresight  he  introduced  and  promoted  the  growth  of  rice  on  the  seacoasts 
of  the  Carolinas,  some  seed  having  been  given  to  him  by  the  captain  of  a 
vessel  from  Madagascar.  It  was  distributed  among  the  planters ; and  so  the 
cultivation  of  this  valuable  cereal  was  begun  in  our  country.  The  name  and 
deeds  of  John  Archdale  were  kept  green  in  the  memory  of  the  Carolinians 
for  generations. 

From  the  close  of  Archdale’s  administration,  the  history  of  the  two 
Carolinas  should  be  considered  separate  and  distinct,  although  they  were  not 
politically  disunited  until  1729. 


I 


CHAPTER  XIV. 


THE  CAROHNAS — DISAPPEARANCE  OF  THE  INDIANS — INTERNAL  COMMOTIONS — EMIGRANTS  FROM 
FRANCE,  SWITZERLAND  AND  GERMANY — AN  INDIAN  RAID  AND  MASSACRE  OF  WHITE  PEOPLE — 
FURTHER  TROUBLE  WITH  THE  INDIANS — SOUTH  CAROLINA — THE  GOVERNOR  MAKES  WAR  ON 
THE  SPANIARDS  IN  FLORIDA — WAR  WITH  INDIANS — POLITICAL  TROUBLES — SOUTH  CAROLINA 
INVADED  BY  SPANIARDS  AND  FRENCHMEN — THE  FOE  EXPELLED — AN  INDIAN  LEAGUE — REVO- 
LUTION IN  SOUTH  CAROLINA — THE  TWO  COLONIES  BECOME  ROYAL  PROVINCES — GEORGIA — 
RELIGIOUS  MISSIONARIES  THERE — OGLETHORPE  AND  THE  SPANIARDS  IN  FLORIDA — CONDITION 
OF  THE  GEORGIA  COLONY — OGLETHORPE  INVADES  FLORIDA — THE  SPANIARDS  INVADE  GEORGIA 
— PUNISHMENT  OF  A DESERTER — THE  SPANIARDS  DRIVEN  OUT  OF  GEORGIA — OGLETHORPE  IN 
ENGLAND — GEORGIA  BECOMES  A ROYAL  PROVINCE. 

WHEN  the  good  Archdale  had  left  the  impress  of  his  example 
and  teachings  upon  the  Carolinians,  both  provinces  began  their 
career  of  permanent  prosperity.  Although  they  were  politically 
united,  each  acted  independently  of  the  other  from  the  close  of  the  seven- 
teenth century.  Both  made  a steady  advance  in  population  and  wealth,  and 
the  arts  of  refined  society. 

The  North  Carolinians  turned  their  attention  to  the  richer  lands  away 
from  the  sea ; and  hunters  trapped  the  beaver  and  otter  in  the  waters  far  in 
the  interior  among  the  hills.  The  Indians  along  the  sea-board  had  melted 
before  the  warmth  of  civilization  like  snow  in  the  sunbeams  of  spring-time. 
The  powerful  Hatteras  tribe,  that  numbered  about  three  thousand  when 
Harriot  healed  King  Wingina,  were  reduced  to  fifteen  bowmen  in  the  year 
1700.  Another  tribe  on  the  Chowan  had  entirely  disappeared;  and  the 
remainder  of  the  savages  in  that  region  had  been  defrauded  of  their  lands 
and  driven  back  into  the  deep  forests,  when  they  and  their  brethren  there 
perished  by  hundreds  by  the  vices  and  diseases  of  the  white  man.  The 
broad  domain  from  the  sea  to  the  Yadkin  and  the  Catawba  then  lay  almost 
uninhabited,  and  invited  to  its  bosom  the  skill  of  the  husbandman  with 
promises  of  wealth  and  comfort. 

At  about  that  time  the  freedom  of  the  North  Carolinians — “ every  one 
of  whom,”  it  was  said,  “ did  what  was  right  in  his  own  eyes,  paying  tribute 
to  neither  God  nor  Caesar” — was  disturbed  by  an  attempt,  in  1704,  to 
establish  there  the  ecclesiastical  dominion  of  the  Church  of  England. 


470 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  III. 


Deputy-Governor  Daniells  had  been  sent  for  that  purpose.  He  caused  the 
first  church  in  the  province,  already  mentioned,  to  be  built  at  the  public 
expense.  The  people  opposed  the  scheme.  The  Friends  led  in  the  oppo- 
sition, and  the  turbulence  that  ensued  soon  bore  the  aspect  of  a political 
quarrel.  Anarchy  prevailed  for  awhile.  On  one  side  in  the  dispute  were 
Churchmen  and  Loyalists ; on  the  other  side  were  Dissenters  and  Repub- 
licans, among  whom  the  Friends,  who  were  rapidly  increasing  in  numbers, 
were  the  most  active,  and  were  ranked  by  the  adherents  of  the  proprietors 
as  a “rabble  of  profligate  persons.”  There  were  two  governors  and  two 
legislatures  for  a time  ; but  their  dissensions  were  soon  quieted.  The  people 
passively  acquiesced  in  the  ecclesiastical  scheme  of  the  deputy-governor, 
but  they  did  not  become  Churchmen.  Several  years  afterward,  there 
was  only  one  clergyman  in  the  provinces,  for  no  congregations  could  be 
gathered. 

Meanwhile  some  excellent  immigrants  had  enriched  the  colony.  In  1607 
some  Huguenots  came  from  their  temporary  settlement  in  Virginia,  and 
seated  themselves  on  the  beautiful  banks  of  the  Trent,  a tributary  of  the 
Neuse.  They  were  followed  two  years  afterward  by  emigrants  from  Switzer- 
land, who  founded  New  Berne  at  the  head  of  the  Neuse.  At  about  the 
same  time  a hundred  fugitive  German  families  from  the  devastated  Palatin- 
ates on  the  Rhine  came  to  seek  shelter  and  repose.  They  were  led  by  Count 
Graffenreid,  and  founded  settlements  upon  the  headwaters  of  the  Neuse  and 
the  banks  of  the  Roanoke. 

Soon  after  these  inland  settlements  were  fairly  planted,  and  were  spread- 
ing, a fearful  calamity  fell  upon  the  Germans.  The  remnants  of  the  exas- 
perated tribes,  who  had  been  driven  into  the  forests,  had  nursed  their  revenge 
until  it  became  too  strong  for  repression.  Incited  and  led  by  the  Tuscaroras, 
a fierce  Algonquin  tribe,  they  joined  in  an  effort  to  re-possess  their  lost 
country.  In  this  patriotic  endeavor  the  Corees,  a tribe  near  the  seaboard 
further  south,  became  their  allies.  They  all  fell  with  terrible  force  upon  the 
scattered  German  settlers  along  the  Roanoke  and  the  borders  of  Pamlico 
Sound;  and  in  a single  October  night  in  1711,  they  slew  one  hundred  and 
thirty  men,  women  and  children,  and  lighted  up  the  country  for  scores  of 
miles  with  the  flames  of  burning  dwellings.  With  the  hatchet  and  torch 
they  swept  like  fiends  along  the  borders  of  Albemarle  Sound,  killing, 
plundering  and  burning,  during  the  space  of  three  days,  until  they  were 
overcome  with  fatigue  and  drunkenness.  On  the  eve  of  this  murderous 
raid,  John  Lawson,  surveyor-general  of  the  province,  and  Count  Graffenreid, 
were  taken  captive  by  the  savages.  They  tortured  Lawson  to  death  by 
burning  him  at  a sapling,  but  the  Count  saved  his  life  and  gained  his  liberty 


Chap.  XIV. 


THE  INDIANS  IN  THE  CAROLINAS. 


471 


by  adroitly  persuading  them  that  he  was  the  sachem  of  a tribe  of  men  who 
had  lately  come  into  the  country,  and  were  in  no  way  connected  with  the 
English. 

The  wildest  excitement  spread  over  North  Carolina.  The  people  fled  in 
affright  toward  the  sea,  and  many  left  the  province.  Those  who  remained 
called  upon  their  brethren  of  South  Carolina  for  help.  Colonel  Barnwell 
hastened  northward  with  some  Carolinians  and  a body  of  friendly  Indians 
composed  of  Creeks,  Cherokees, 

Catawbas,  and  Yammasees.  The 
savage  tide  was  rolled  back. 

The  Tuscaroras  were  driven  to 
their  fortified  town  in  the  present 
Craven  county,  and  there  a 
solemn  treaty  of  peace  was  made 
between  the  white  men  and  the 
Indians.  All  might  have  been 
well  but  for  the  treachery  of  the 
South  Carolinians,  who,  on  their 
way  homeward,  violated  the 
treaty  by  committing  outrages 
upon  the  Indians.  The  latter 
were  enraged,  and  speedily  flew 
to  arms.  Terror  everywhere 
prevailed.  It  seemed  as  if  the 
purpose  of  the  savages  to  anni- 
hilate the  intruders  would  be 
accomplished.  Back  to  the 
rescue  of  their  brethren  from 
destruction  went  the  Carolinians. 

Colonel  Moore,  with  a small 
number  of  white  men  and  a war-path. 

large  body  of  Indians,  soon  met 

and  defeated  the  hostile  savages.  The  Tuscaroras  were  driven  to  their  fort 
in  the  present  Greene  county,  where  eight  hundred  of  them  were  made 
prisoners.  The  remainder  of  the  tribe  fled  to  the  north,  and  joined  their 
kindred  near  the  southern  shores  of  Lake  Ontario,  when  they  became  the 
sixth  nation  of  the  Iroquois  Confederacy  in  the  province  of  New  York.  A 
treaty  of  peace  was  made  with  the  Corees  afterward,  and  North  Carolina 
never  again  suffered  from  the  hostility  of  Indians.  The  war  had  cost  the 
province  a large  sum  of  money,  for  the  payment  of  which  bills  of  credit 

31 


472 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  III. 


were  issued  to  the  amount  of  forty  thousand  dollars.  This  was  the  first 
issue  of  paper  money  in  North  Carolina. 

During  the  years  when  the  people  of  the  northern  colony  were  suffering 
from  civil  commotions  and  Indian  raids,  the  South  Carolinians  were  excited 
by  troubles  with  the  Spaniards  and  the  neighboring  barbarians.  The 
governor  (James  Moore)  was  more  belligerent  and  aggressive  than  his  prede- 
cessors. When  he  heard  of  Queen  Anne’s  proclamation  of  war  with  France 
in  May,  1702,  and  that  Spain  was  involved  in  the  quarrel,  he  proposed  an 
expedition  against  the  Spaniards  at  St.  Augustine.  The  Assembly  agreed 
with  the  governor  and  appropriated  nearly  ten  thousand  dollars  for  the 
enterprise.  An  army  of  twelve  hundred  men  (one-half  of  them  Indians) 
was  raised,  and  in  two  divisions  they  proceeded,  one  by  land  and  the  other 
by  sea,  to  make  the  attack.  The  governor  commanded  the  forces  on  the 
ships,  and  Colonel  Daniels  the  division  that  crossed  the  Savannah  River, 
traversed  Georgia  along  the  coast,  penetrated  Florida,  and  made  the  first 
attack.  The  Spaniards  retired  within  their  fort,  with  provisions  for  four 
months,  where  they  were  quite  safe  from  harm,  for  their  enemies  had  no 
artillery. 

Governor  Moore  arrived  with  his  vessels  and  troops  soon  afterward,  and 
blockaded  the  harbor  of  St.  Augustine.  When  Daniels  had  plundered  the 
town,  he  was  sent  to  Jamaica  for  battering  cannon,  but  before  his  return  two 
Spanish  war-vessels  had  frightened  the  blockaders  away,  and  the  colonel 
came  very  near  being  made  captive.  He  reached  Charleston  in  safety,  and 
the  ill-advised  expedition  was  then  at  an  end.  It  cost  the  colony  a large 
sum  of  money,  and  to  defray  the  expenses  bills  of  credit  were  issued  to  the 
amount  of  twenty-six  thousand  dollars.  This  was  the  first  issue  of  paper 
money  in  South  Carolina. 

Late  in  the  following  year.  Governor  Moore  tried  his  skill  again  in 
making  war.  This  time  it  was  against  hostile  Indians  who  were  in  league 
with  the  Spaniards.  These  were  the  Appalachians,  a Mobilian  tribe,  who 
occupied  a region  in  Georgia  between  the  Savannah  and  Alatamaha  rivers. 
There  their  chief  villages  were  situated,  and  there  large  gardens  were  culti- 
vated. Against  these  the  governor  proceeded  with  a force  competent  to 
insure  success.  The  villages  were  desolated  ; the  gardens  were  laid  waste ; 
eight  hundred  men,  women  and  children  were  carried  into  captivity,  and  the 
inhabitants  of  the  whole  region  were  made  vassals  or  subjects  of  the  English. 
By  this  movement  a thorn  of  irritation  was  planted  in  the  bosom  of  the 
surrounding  Indians  which  rankled  for  years,  and  was  one  of  the  causes 
that  spurred  them  into  fierce  hostility  afterward. 

Just  as  the  province  was  becoming  tranquil  after  the  war  with  the 


Chap.  XIV. 


HOSTILITIES  AT  CHARLESTON. 


473 


savages,  it  was  disquieted  by  turbulence  in  civil  affairs  in  its  own  bosom. 
The  proprietors  resolved  to  establish  the  liturgy  of  the  Church  of  England 
in  South  Carolina,  as  the  standard  order  of  public  worship.  Sir  Nathaniel 
Johnson,  who  was  the  official  successor  of  Governor  Moore,  found  a majority 
of  Churchmen  in  the  Assembly,  and  easily  executed  the  wishes  of  his 
masters.  Dissenters  were  disfranchised — deprived  of  the  rights  of  free 
citizens — and  actually  suffered  persecutions.  After  a season  of  much  turbu- 
lence, they  appealed  to  the  crown,  and  in  the  autumn  of  1706,  the 
Assembly,  by  order  of  Parliament,  repealed  the  law  of  disfranchise- 
ment. But  the  Anglican  Church  maintained  its  supremacy  in 
ecclesiastical  affairs  in  the  province  until  the  war  for  independence. 

The  attack  of  the  South  Carolinians  on  St.  Augustine  excited  the 
anger  of  the  Spaniards.  An  expedition, 
consisting  of  five  vessels-of-war  under  the 
command  of  the  French  admiral  Le 
Feboure,  and  a large  body  of  troops, 
was  sent  from  Havana  to  attack  Charles- 
ton, conquer  the  province  and  annex  it  to 
the  Spanish  territory  in  Florida.  When, 
in  May,  1706,  the  squadron  crossed  Charles- 
ton bar,  and  about  eight  hundred  troops 
were  landed  at  diffei'ent  points,  the  com- 
mander sent  a flag  to  the  city  with  a per- 
emptory order  for  a surrender,  and  threat- 
ening to  take  it  by  storm  in  case  of  a 
refusal  to  submit.  Governor  Moore  had 
been  apprised  of  the  expedition,  and  was 
prepared  to  meet  it.  When  the  flag 
arrived,  he  had  so  disposed  the  provincial 
militia  and  a host  of  Indian  warriors,  as 
to  give  an  exaggerated  idea  of  the  strength 
of  the  Carolinians.  Before  the  messenger  could  make  any  extended  obser- 
vations he  was  dismissed  with  the  defiant  reply  that  the  people  were  ready 
to  sustain  the  promised  attack. 

This  was  followed  by  a furious  assault,  just  at  dawn,  upon  the  invaders 
on  shore  by  a strong  party  of  South  Carolinians.  They  killed  many, 
captured  more,  and  drove  the  remnant  back  to  their  ships.  At  the  same 
time  the  little  provincial  navy,  lying  in  the  harbor,  prepared^to  attack  the 
invading  squadron.  The  French  admiral,  amazed  and  alarmed  by  the 
display  of  valor  on  shore,  weighed  anchor  and  fled  to  sea.  A French  war- 


A FLAG  OF  TRUCE. 


474 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  111. 


ship,  uninformed  of  these  events,  sailed  into  the  harbor  soon  afterward,  with 
troops,  and  was  captured.  The  victory  was  complete.  The  dark  storm- 
cloud,  from  which  a destructive  tempest  was  expected,  suddenly  dissolved, 
and  the  sunshine  of  peace  and  prosperity  gladdened  the  colonists  for  a 
season. 

At  length  a more  frightful  tempest  was  seen  brooding  over  the  colony. 
It  had  gathered  with  fearful  celerity.  A league  had  been  formed  among 
the  surrounding  Indian  tribes  to  exterminate  the  English.  It  was  the 
secret  work  of  the  Spaniards  in  Florida  and  the  French  in  the  Missis- 
sippi Valley.  Within  the  space  of  forty  days,  a confederacy  had  been 
formed,  including  the  whole  Indian  tribes  from  the  Cape  Fear  on  the  north 
to  the  St.  Mary’s  on  the  south,  and  back  to  the  rivers  beyond  the  mountains 
in  the  west.  The  warriors  of  the  league  were  full  six  thousand  strong.  It 
comprised  the  Cherokees,  Choctaws,  Chickasaws,  Catawbas  and  Congarees 
on  the  west,  and  the  Creeks,  Yammasees  and  Appalachians  on  the  south. 
At  the  same  time  a thousand  warriors  broke  forth  from  the  forests  of  the 
Neuse  region  to  avenge  their  misfortunes  in  the  war  two  or  three  years 
before. 

So  secretly  had  the  savages  organized,  that  not  a whisper  of  impending 
danger  had  reached  the  inhabitants  of  Charleston,  before  the  news  came  that 
on  the  morning  of  Good  Friday  (April  13,  1715),  the  Yammasees  had  begun 
an  indiscriminate  massacre  of  the  white  people  along  the  seaboard.  The 
news  had  been  carried  from  the  scene  of  destruction  by  a swift-footed  sea- 
man who  broke  through  the  lines  of  the  furious  savages,  ran  ten  miles  and 
swam  one,  and  told  the  dreadful  tale  to  the  settlers  at  Port  Royal.  These 
fled  in  canoes  and  in  a ship,  and  carried  the  first  intelligence  of  the  sad 
event  to  Charleston.  A stream  of  terror-stricken  planters  and  their  families 
began  pouring  into  the  city  at  the  same  time.  The  capital  was  in  peril. 
The  governor  (Craven)  acted  promptly  and  efficiently  in  the  emergency. 
He  took  measures  to  prevent  men  leaving  the  colony.  He  declared  the 
province  to  be  under  martial-law ; took  measures  to  secure  all  arms  and 
ammunition  to  be  found,  and  called  upon  the  citizens  to  prepare  to  fight 
valiantly  for  their  lives  and  property.  He  put  arms  into  the  hands  of  faith- 
ful negro  slaves;  and  with  a motley  army  of  white  men,  Indians  and  black 
men,  twelve  hundred  strong,  he  marched  to  meet  the  savages,  who  were 
approaching  from  the  interior  with  their  knives  and  hatchets  in  fearful 
activity.  After  some  severe  encounters  with  them,  the  governor  drove  the 
Yammasees  across  the  Savannah  River  and  through  Georgia,  giving  them 
no  rest  until  they  found  it  under  the  protection  of  the  guns  of  St.  Augustine. 
Meanwhile  the  warriors  from  the  north  had  been  driven  back  to  the  forests. 


Chap.  XIV.  PROPRIETARY  GOVERNMENT  IN  THE  CAROLINAS.  475 

and  the  Cherokees  and  their  neighbors,  who  had  not  yet  taken  up  the 
hatchet,  had  retired  to  their  hunting-grounds,  deeply  impressed  by  the  evi- 
dences of  the  strength  and  prowess  of  the  white  people.  So,  again,  was 
sunshine  brought  to  South  Carolina,  in  the  beautiful  month  of  May,  1715. 

Proprietary  government  in  South  Carolina  was  now  drawing  to  a clo.se. 
It  had  been  a heavy  burden  upon  the  colonists  from  the  beginning.  The 


THE  ALARM. 


governors  appointed  by  the  proprietors,  being  independent  of  the  people, 
had  often  been  haughty  and  exacting,  and  they  irritated  rather  than  con- 
ciliated the  popular  mind.  While  the  colonists  were  laboring  to  build  up  a 
permanent  and  prosperous  State,  the  proprietors  refused  to  assist  them  in 
times  of  danger  or  to  reimburse  their  expenses  incurred  in  defending  the 
domain  from  invasion.  The  people  were  not  only  compelled  to  bear  the 


476 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  111. 


whole  expense  of  the  late  war  with  the  Indians,  but  the  proprietors  enforced 
their  claims  for  quit-rents  more  remorselessly  than  ever. 

The  colonists  saw  no  way  to  cast  off  their  chains  but  by  revolution,  and 
no  security  for  the  future  but  in  royal  rule  and  protection.  So  they  resolved 
to  revolt.  Their  popular  Assembly  declared  that  they  would  have  nothing 
further  to  do  with  the  proprietors,  and  asked  Governor  Johnson  to  rule  in 
the  name  of  the  king.  He  refused,  when  a Convention  of  the  people 
prepared  to  choose  a governor  for  themselves. 

Johnson  had  appointed  the  first  day  of  December  as  the  time  for  a 
general  review  of  the  militia  of  the  province.  The  Convention  chose  the 
same  day  as  the  time  for  the  election  of  a popular  governor.  Johnson  then 
countermanded  the  order  for  the  review.  But  the  militia  assembled  in  large 
numbers  in  the  public  square  at  Charleston.  They  were  a part  of  the 
people;  and  when  the  ^governor  ordered  their  commander  to  disperse  them, 
he  said  : “ I obey  the  Convention.”  Then  the  people  proceeded  to  the  elec- 
tion of  a chief  magistrate,  when  James  Moore  was  chosen.  Soon  afterward 
proprietary  rule  was  dismissed  from  the  soil  of  South  Carolina.  The  royal 
ear  listened  favorably  to  a petition  presented  by  an  agent  of  the  colony,  in 
England.  The  charter  of  the  proprietaries  was  abrogated,  and  in  1720,  South 
Carolina  became  a royal  province,  with  Francis  Nicholson  as  royal  governor. 

North  Carolina  was  relieved  of  proprietary  rule  without  enduring  the 
throes  of  actual  revolution.  From  the  time  when  its  southern  sister  passed 
under  royal  rule  and  protection,  the  people  of  the  northern  colony  became 
more  and  more  restive.  They  seemed  to  be  on  the  verge  of  revolution, 
when,  in  1729,  the  proprietors,  seeing  the  inevitable  drift  of  public  sentiment, 
made  a virtue  of  necessity,  and  sold  that  domain  to  the  king  for  about 
eighty  thousand  dollars.  It  then  became  a royal  province.  The  two  Caro- 
linas  were  then  separated.  George  Burrington  was  appointed  governor  of 
North  Carolina,  and  Robert  Johnson  was  made  chief  magistrate  of  South 
Carolina.  The  people  of  the  provinces  were  soon  convinced  that  they  had 
gained  nothing  by  a change  of  rulers;  and  from  the  time  of  the  separation 
until  the  French  and  Indian  war,  their  history  is  largely  made  up  of  the 
records  of  disputes  between  the  people  and  the  royal  governors. 

The  latest  planted  of  the  English  colonies  in  America  was  Georgia,  the 
founding  of  which  we  have  already  considered.  The  settlers  there  had  very 
little  intercourse  with  or  knowledge  of  the  outside  world,  and  thought  of  but 
little  excepting  the  material  interests  of  their  new  homes,  until  after  Ogle- 
thorpe’s return  from  England  early  in  1736.  Then  foreign  politics  threat- 
ened dangers  from  their  neighbors,  and  religious  teachings  stirred  the 
sluggish  society  into  some  activity. 


Chap.  XIV. 


THE  WESLEYS  IN  GEORGIA. 


477 


With  the  great  guns  and  the  Highlanders  skilled  in  military  art,  came 
with  Oglethorpe  many  Germans  to  join  their  Moravian  brethren  who  had 
settled  in  Georgia  two  or  three  years  before.  He  was  also  accompanied  by 
John  and  Charles  Wesley,  sons  of  an  English  poet  and  divine  in  the  reigns 
of  James,  William,  and  Anne.  They  were  religious  enthusiasts,  and  were 
clergymen  of  the  Church  of  England.  The  great  guns  and  the  Highlanders 
came  to  make  war  upon  visible  invaders  of  the  domain ; the  Wesleys  came 
to  make  war  upon  the  invisible  foes  of  righteousness.  John  was  then  thirty- 
three  years  of  age,  and  came  as  a missionary  of  the  gospel  among  the  settlers 
and  the  surrounding  pagans.  Charles  came  as  an  assistant  to  his  brother  in 
this  warfare,  and  as  secretary  to  Governor  Oglethorpe.  They  had  lately 
begun  that  course  of  independent  action  in  England,  which  caused  the 
pulpits  of  their  church  to  be  closed  against  them  and  led  to  the  founding  of 
the  Methodist  denomination. 

John  Wesley  was  fervent  in  spirit  and  eloquent  in  speech.  A large 
congregation  attended  his  ministrations  at  Savannah,  at  first ; but  the 
austerity  of  his  maxims,  his  fearless  denunciations  of  vice  and  even  foibles, 
and  his  rigid  exercise  of  ecclesiastical  authority,  soon  involved  him  in 
serious  disputes  with  the  settlers,  who  were  a peculiarly  mixed  people.  He 
became  unpopular,  and  was  sorely  vexed  and  irritated  by  opponents  on 
every  side.  At  length  he  became  involved  in  a difficulty  with  a woman 
whom  he  had  refused  to  admit  to  the  communion,  and  he  left  the  province 
in  disgust  at  the  end  of  two  years,  and  returned  to  England,  “ shaking  the 
dust  off  his  feet,”  as  he  expressed  it.  His  mission  in  Georgia  was  a failure. 

At  that  time  there  was  a sturdy  young  preacher  in  England  who  was 
swaying  multitudes  by  his  fervid  eloquence.  He  was  a friend  of  the 
Wesleys,  and  obtained  permission  to  join  them  in  Georgia.  He  was  not 
quite  twenty-four  years  of  age  when  he  arrived  at  Savannah.  The  Wesleys 
had  departed,  but  the  young  missionary,  George  Whitefield,  entered  upon 
his  sacred  duties  with  fervor.  More  practical  than  Wesley,  he  became  a 
blessing  not  only  to  Georgia,  but  to  other  American  colonies,  where  he 
labored  much  as  an  independent  itinerant  preacher.  He  established  an 
asylum  for  orphans  at  Savannah,  which  was  founded  and  supported  several 
years  by  voluntary  subscriptions  which  he  procured  in  England  and  else- 
where. He  worked  lovingly  with  the  Moravians  in  Georgia,  who  made  a 
most  salutary  impression  upon  society  there. 

On  his  return,  Oglethorpe  discovered  that  the  Spaniards  at  St.  Augustine 
were  very  jealous  of  the  rapid  growth  of  the  Georgia  colony.  He  was  not 
fairly  prepared  to  resist  an  invasion  by  arms,  and  he  sent  a messenger  to  St. 
Augustine  to  invite  the  commander  to  a friendly  conference.  At  about  the 


478 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  111 


same  time  he  went,  with  a number  of  his  martial  Highlanders,  on  an  explor- 
ing expedition  among  the  islands  and  along  the  coasts  of  Georgia.  On  St. 
Simons’  Island  he  founded  Frederica  and  built  a fort  there.  Sailing  up 
Alatamaha  Sound,  he  visited  New  Inverness  (now  Darien),  where  a few  Scotch 
people  had  planted  a settlement.  He  was  dressed  in  Highland  costume, 
and  with  his  Gaelic  followers  he  was  warmly  welcomed  by  the  settlers,  who 
came  to  the  beach  in  their  plaids,  bearing  various  weapons,  and  expressing 
their  delight  with  the  sounds  of  the  bagpipe  in  merry  tunes.  There,  too,  he 
marked  out  a small  fortification. 

It  was  now  warm  spring  weather.  Oglethorpe’s  messenger  had  not 
returned  from  St.  Augustine,  and  he  proceeded  to  manifest  the  intention  of 
Great  Britain  to  sustain  its  claims  to  the  country  as  far  south  as  the  St. 


OGLETHORPE  RECEIVED  AT  DARIEN. 


John’s  River.  On  Cumberland  Island,  to  which  he  sailed  on  leaving  Darien, 
he  marked  out  a fort  to  be  called  St.  Andrew’s,  which  would  command  the 
mouth  of  the  St.  Mary’s,  the  stream  which  finally  became  the  southern 
boundary  of  Georgia.  At  the  southern  extremity  of  an  island  at  the 
entrance  of  St.  John’s  River,  he  also  planned  a small  military  work,  which 
he  called  Fort  St.  George.  He  also  founded  Augusta  far  up  the  Savannah 
River,  and  erected  a stockade  there  as  a defence  against  Indians  from  the 
west  who  might  be  under  the  influence  of  French  or  Spanish  traders. 

These  hostile  preparations  irritated  the  Spaniards  at  St.  Augustine. 
They  detained  Oglethorpe’s  messengers  as  prisoners,  and  threatened  war. 
The  news  spread  among  the  friendly  Indians.  To-mo-chi-chi  came  with 
painted  warriors  to  offer  his  aid.  So,  too,  did  other  chiefs  ; and  the  Chicka- 
saws  sent  a delegation  to  bear  assurances  of  friendship  and  alliance  to  the 


Chap.  XIV. 


PREPARATIONS  FOR  HOSTILITIES. 


479 


ears  of  the  governor,  and  a crown  of  brilliant  feathers,  adorned  with  the 
polished  horns  of  the  buffalo,  for  the  brow  of  Oglethorpe.  With  these 
tribes  at  his  back  as  allies,  Oglethorpe  felt  strong.  The  governor  of  St. 
Augustine,  who  had  tampered  with  them,  hearing  of  their  alliance  with  the 
English,  expressed  a willingness  to  treat  for  a settlement  of  all  disputes. 
An  honorable  treaty  was  made.  The  messengers  were  released,  and  the 
Georgians  abandoned  Fort  St.  George.  But  the  home  government  of  Spain 
did  not  approve  the  treaty,  and  Oglethorpe  was  notified  that  a commission 
from  Cuba  would  meet  him  at  Frederica.  He  appeared  with  his  secretary, 
after  leaving  three  regiments  of  Spanish  infantry  at  St.  Augustine,  and 
peremptorily  demanded  the  evacuation  by  the  British  of  all  Georgia  and 
of  South  Carolina  below  the  parallel  of  Port  Royal,  claiming  all  of  that 
region  as  a part  of  the  dominions  of  Spain.  The  conference  ended  without 
an  agreement. 

Oglethorpe  now  hastened  to  England  to  confer  with  the  trustees  and 
seek  military  strength  for  his  colony,  for  he  was  satisfied  that  it  was  in  peril 
from  the  increased  number  of  soldiers  thrown  into  Florida.  He  was  com- 
missioned a brigadier-general,  and  invested  with  authority  over  the  military 
in  Georgia  and  South  Carolina.  He  was  also  authorized  to  raise  troops  in 
England  to  serve  in  America.  He  did  so,  and  with  these  he  arrived  in 
Georgia  in  the  autumn  of  1738,  when  he  found  general  discontent  prevail- 
ing. The  colony  was  not  prosperous,  owing  partly  to  the  unwise  regulations 
of  the  trustees  referred  to  at  the  close  of  Book  II,  and  partly  because  many 
of  the  emigrants  who  came  from  England  were  men  unaccustomed  to 
manual  labor  and  habits  of  industry.  The  use  of  slave  labor,  so  productive 
in  other  colonies,  was  forbidden  in  Georgia,  and  tillage  was  neglected. 
Even  the  industrious  Scotch,  Swiss  and  German  settlers  in  Georgia  previous 
to  the  year  1740,  when  the  colony  contained  twenty-five  hundred  souls, 
could  not  give  that  vitality  to  industrial  pursuits  which  was  necessary  for  the 
development  of  the  resources  of  that  virgin  soil. 

The  greed  of  English  merchants,  who  were  growing  rich  by  illicit  trade 
on  the  coasts  of  Spanish-America  at  the  expense  of  Spanish  commerce,  was 
fostered  by  the  English  ministry,  who  were  blindly  bent  on  destroying  the 
Spanish  colonial  system  in  the  so-called  New  World.  Spain  resented  this 
interference  with  her  rights,  and  for  this — the  real  cause — England  declared 
war  against  that  kingdom  late  in  1739. 

Oglethorpe  had  been  apprised  of  this  measure  at  an  early  date.  He 
knew  that  St.  Augustine  had  been  strengthened  by  more  troops,  and  he 
resolved  to  strike  a blow  there  before  his  enemy  should  be  well  prepared. 
He  had  just  put  an  end  to  a conspiracy  in  Georgia  to  assassinate  him,  and  a 


480 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  III. 


negro  insurrection  in  South  Carolina — both  incited  by  Spanish  emissaries. 
He  first  penetrated  Florida  with  a small  force,  and  captured  some  outposts, 
early  in  1740.  In  May  he  marched  into  Florida  with  six  hundred  of  his 
regular  troops,  four  hundred  Carolina  militia,  and  a large  body  of  friendly 
Indians.  He  was  before  St.  Augustine  in  June,  after  capturing  two  little 
forts,  one  within  twenty  miles  of  the  city,  and  the  other  only  two  miles 
distant.  A demand  was  made  for  the  instant  surrender  of  the  fortress  and 
garrison.  It  was  defiantly  refused.  Oglethorpe  determined  to  starve  the 
garrison  by  a close  investment.  He  surrounded  the  town,  and  with  a little 
squadron  blockaded  the  harbor.  For  awhile  supplies  for  the  fort  were  cut  off, 
and  the  English  were  promised  success,  but  very  soon  swift-sailing  galleys 
ran  the  weak  blockade  and  placed  ample  supplies  in  the  fort.  Oglethorpe 
had  no  cannon  wherewith  to  batter  and  breach  the  fortress.  Warned  by  the 
increasing  heats  of  summer  and  the  approach  of  the  sickly  season,  whose 
malaria  had  already  invaded  his  camp,  the  general  raised  the  siege  and 
returned  to  Savannah. 

Hostilities  were  now  suspended  for  almost  two  years,  when  the  Spaniards 
determined  to  invade  Georgia.  With  a fleet  of  thirty-six  vessels  from  Cuba 
and  a land  force  about  three  thousand  strong,  they  entered  the  harbor  of  St. 
Simons  in  July,  1742.  The  vigilant  Oglethorpe,  who  had  been  informed  of 
the  expedition,  was  there  before  them,  but  with  less  than  a thousand  men 
including  Indians.  The  governor  of  South  Carolina  had  failed  to  furnish 
men  or  supplies,  and  upon  the  Georgians  devolved  the  task  of  defending 
both  provinces  from  invasion.  The  intrepid  general,  when  he  saw  the  white 
sails  of  the  Spanish  ships  in  the  distance,  went  on  board  one  of  his  own 
little  vessels,  and  addressing  the  seamen,  said:  “We  must  protect  Carolina 
and  the  rest  of  the  colonies  from  destruction,  or  die  in  the  attempt.  For 
myself,  I am  prepared  for  all  dangers.  I know  the  enemy  are  far  more 
numerous  than  we  ; but  I rely  on  the  valor  of  our  men,  and  by  God’s  help, 
I believe  we  will  be  victorious.” 

When  the  fleet  passed  the  English  batteries  at  the  southern  end  of  the 
island,  Oglethorpe  saw  that  resistance  would  be  vain.  He  ordered  his 
vessels  to  run  up  to  Frederica,  while  he  spiked  his  guns  at  St.  Simons  and 
retreated  to  the  same  place  with  his  troops.  There  he  waited  for  reinforce- 
ments from  Carolina,  but  they  did  not  come.  Spanish  detachments  annoyed 
him  with  frequent  attacks,  but  he  always  repulsed  them. 

At  length  Oglethorpe  resolved  to  act  on  the  offensive,  and  make  a 
stealthy  night  attack  upon  the  Spanish  encampment  near  St.  Simons.  He 
moved  cautiously  along  a road  which  he  had  constructed,  with  a dense  live- 
oak  forest  draped  with  Spanish  moss  on  one  side,  and  a deep  morass  on  the 


Chap.  XIV. 


A NOVEL  WAY  OF  PUNISHMENT. 


481 


Other.  When  he  was  near  the  camp,  a Frenchman  in  his  little  army  ran 
ahead,  fired  his  musket,  and  deserted  to  the  enemy.  The  Spaniards  were 
aroused,  and  Oglethorpe  fell  back  to  Frederica. 

The  general  punished  the  deserter  in  a novel  way.  He  employed  a 
Spanish  prisoner  to  carry  a letter  to  him,  secretly,  in  which  Oglethorpe 
addressed  him  as  a spy  in  the  enemy’s  camp.  He  told  him  to  represent  the 
Georgians  as  very  weak  in  numbers  and  arms,  and  advise  the  Spaniards  to 
attack  them  at  once ; and  if  they  would  not  do  so,  to  try  and  persuade  them 
to  remain  at  St.  Simons  three  days  longer,  for  within  that  time  a British 
fleet  with  two  thousand  land  troops  would  arrive  to  attack  St.  Augustine. 


OGLETHORPp.  COTTON  MATHER.  GEORGE  THE  SECOND.  JOHN  WESLEY. 


The  bearer  of  the  letter,  as  Oglethorpe  expected  and  hoped  he  would, 
carried  it  to  the  Spanish  commander.  It  produced  a great  commotion  in 
camp.  The  Frenchman  was  arrested  and  put  in  irons,  and  afterward  hanged 
as  a spy.  A council  pf  war  was  called,  and  while  it  was  in  session  som.e 
vessels  from  Carolina  were  seen  at  sea.  They  were  mistaken  for  the  British 
fleet  alluded  to,  and  the  Spaniards  determined  to  attack  Oglethorpe  imme- 
diately, and  then  hasten  to  the  defence  of  St.  Augustine. 

An  advanced  division  moved  immediately  on  Frederica.  On  the  narrow 
road  flanked  by  the  forest  and  the  morass,  within  a mile  of  the  fort,  they 


482 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  HI. 


were  assailed  by  Oglethorpe  and  his  Highlanders,  who  lay  in  ambush. 
Almost  the  whole  party  of  the  invaders  were  killed  or  captured.  A second 
party  pressing  forward  to  their  relief,  met  the  fate  of  the  first.  The  Spaniards 
retreated  in  confusion,  leaving  about  two  hundred  of  their  companions  dead 
on  the  field.  They  fled  to  their  ships  and  hastened  to  St.  Augustine,  only 
to  find  that  they  had  been  outgeneraled  by  the  governor  of  Georgia.  The 
place  of  the  battle  has  been  called  “ The  Bloody  Marsh  ” to  this  day.  The 
stratagem  of  Oglethorpe  had  worked  such  disaster  to  the  Spanish  expedition 
that  its  commander,  Don  Manuel  de  Monteano,  was  dismissed  from  the 
service.  That  stratagem  probably  saved  Georgia  and  South  Carolina  from 
utter  ruin. 

Oglethorpe  had  settled,  colonized  and  defended  Georgia  with  rare 
courage,  energy  and  skill,  not  for  personal  glory  and  worldly  gain,  but  for  a 
great  and  benevolent  purpose.  Having  firmly  established  the  colony,  he 
returned  to  England  in  1743,  where,  after  performing  good  military  service 
for  his  king  against  the  “ Young  Pretender,”  he  retired  to  his  seat  in  Essex. 
When  General  Gage  returned  to  England  from  America  in  1775,  he  was 
offered  the  chief  command  of  the  British  army  in  this  country,  though  he 
. was  then  almost  eighty  years  of  age.  His  benevolent  ideas  did  not  suit 
the  temper  of  the  British  ministry  then,  and  General  William  Howe 
received  the  appointment.  When,  at  the  close  of  the  Revolution,  John 
Adams  went  to  England  as  American  minister  at  the  British  court,  Ogle- 
thorpe was  among  the  first  to  congratulate  him  because  of  the  independence 
of  his  country.  The  brave  Founder  of  Georgia  died  the  next  year,  at  the 
age  of  almost  ninety  years,  with  all  his  mental  faculties  in  full  vigor. 

Oglethorpe  was  a benefactor  in  the  higher  sense  of  that  term.  For  the 
good  of  his  fellow-men,  he  had  renounced  ease  of  body  and  mind  and  the 
enjoyment  of  fortune  and  friends  in  his  native  land.  He  had  encountered 
dangers  in  many  forms  unknown  in  England,  not  for  the  glory  that  leads  a 
soldier  to  brave  the  perils  of  a strange  land.  He  was  gentle  and  good ; 
merciful  toward  offenders  and  enemies ; a father  to  the  emigrants  whom  he 
led  to  the  banks  of  the  Savannah  River;  the  warm  friend  of  the  Wesleys 
and  kind  guardian  of  the  Moravians,  with  a missionary  spirit  ever  anxious 
for  the  spiritual  welfare  and  mental  culture  of  the  pagans  around  him  ; and 
it  always  gave  him  pleasure  to  relieve  the  poor  and  the  weak  of  their  burdens. 
Oglethorpe  outlived  most  of  the  companions  of  his  youth  ; but  he  was  so 
loving  and  lovable  that  he  made  ‘‘troops  of  friends”  on  his  long  journey 
of  life,  who  were  to  him  in  his  vigorous  old  age  like  green  branches  nourished 
by  his  abounding  virtues.  Even  in  that  old  age,  his  person  was  spoken  of 
as  ‘‘the  finest  figure  that  ever  was  seen.”  His  prominent  eyes  retained  their 


Chap.  XIV. 


GEORGIA  BECOMES  A ROYAL  PROVINCE. 


483 


brightness  undimmed,  and  his  person,  tall  and  straight,  was  like  a vigorous 
pine  until  the  close  of  his  life. 

After  the  departure  of  Oglethorpe,  Georgia  enjoyed  repose  from  conflicts 
with  hostile  neighbors.  He  left  the  country  in  a state  of  tranquillity.  The 
same  year  it  passed  from  the  control  of  a mild  military  government  to  that 
of  a civil  organization,  managed  by  a president  and  five  councillors  or  assist- 
ants, under  the  supreme  authority  of  the  trustees,  in  England.  Yet  the 
colony  languished  for  reasons  already  mentioned,  and  general  discontent 
prevailed.  The  restrictive  laws  were  generally  relaxed  and  were  generally 
evaded,  especially  those  relating  to  slave-labor.  Slaves  were  brought  across 
the  Savannah  from  South  Carolina,  and  hired  to  the  Georgia  planters  for  a 
hundred  years,  the  sum  paid  for  such  life-service  being  the  market  value  of 
the  slave.  The  transaction  was  practically  the  introduction  of  the  slave- 
labor  system  into  Georgia.  It  was  not  interfered  with  ; and  very  soon  ships 
laden  with  negroes  from  Africa  came  to  Savannah,  and  men,  women  and 
children  were  offered  for  sale,  in  a way  somewhat  evasive  of  law,  in  the  open 
market,  by  the  auctioneer.  In  the  year  1750,  Georgia  was  really  a slave- 
labor  province.  Then  agriculture  flourished,  and  the  colony  took  its  place 
as  a planting  State  in  an  equal  position  by  the  side  of  its  sister  across  the 
Savannah. 

In  1752,  when  the  twenty-one  years  named  in  the  charter  had  expired, 
the  trustees  gladly  gave  that  instrument  to  the  king,  and  Georgia  became  a 
royal  province.  So  it  remained  until  the  old  war  for  independence. 


CHAPTER  XV. 


REVIEW  OF  THE  HISTORY  OF  DISCOVERIES — SETTLEMENTS  AND  COLONIZATION  IN  AMERICA — 
PLANTING  THE  SEEDS  OF  FRENCH  DOMINION  IN  AMERICA — THE  LABORS,  INFLUENCE  AND 
SUCCESS  OF  THE  JESUITS — ADVENTURES  BEYOND  THE  GREAT  LAKES — FATHER  MARQUETTE 
AND  HIS  DISCOVERY  OF  THE  MISSISSIPPI  RIVER — HIS  VOYAGE  UPON  THAT  STREAM  AND  ITS 
RESULTS — LA  SALLE— HIS  EXPEDITION  TO  THE  VALLEY  OF  THE  MISSISSIPPI  — HE  VOYAGES 
ON  THAT  RIVER  TO  THE  GULF  OF  MEXICO — HE  DISCOVERS  AND  NAMES  LOUISIANA — HIS 
ATTEMPTS  TO  COLONIZE  THAT  REGION — DISCOVERY  OF  TEXAS — DEATH  OF  LA  SALLE— SUBSE- 
QUENT COLONIZATION  BY  THE  FRENCH. 

WE  have  now  traced  the  history  of  our  country  from  its  discovery 
at  near  the  close  of  the  fifteenth  century,  until  the  time  when 
European  colonies  planted  here,  were  forming  that  political 
union  for  mutual  defence  which  speedily  crystallized  into  the  grand  form  of 
an  independent  nation  late  in  the  eighteenth  century. 

In  the  course  of  these  investigations,  we  have  noted  how  the  allurements 
of  science,  human  enterprise,  a lust  for  dominion  and  power,  and  the  greed 
of  individuals,  impelled  men  to  spend  fortunes  and  risk  their  lives  in  making 
voyages  of  discovery  along  the  coasts  of  the  American  continent,  from  the 
regions  of  the  frozen  ocean  to  those  under  the  equator ; also  among  the 
islands  that  lie  in  American  waters  within  the  tropic  of  Cancer.  We  have 
seen  how  the  monarchs  and  navigators  of  Spain,  Portugal,  France  and 
England  struggled  for  the  honors  and  emoluments  to  be  derived  from  such 
discoveries ; how  the  Spaniards  extended  their  dominions  by  force  over  the 
islands  and  coasts  of  the  western  world  in  the  space  of  a few  years,  by  the 
help  of  the  Roman  Pontiff,  and  obtained  the  mastery  over  vast  and  fertile 
regions  in  the  warm  zone,  while  the  French,  English  and  Dutch  discovered 
and  took  possession  of  extensive  domains  in  the  temperate  zone  and  far 
toward  the  verge  of  the  Arctic  Circle. 

These  great  movements  were  made  in  the  “ fullness  of  time,”  as  if  in 
preparation  for  that  expansion  of  the  human  intellect  and  those  wonderful 
human  achievements  which  had  then  begun  in  Europe.  Geographical 
science  was  then  a favorite  study,  and  the  cosmographers  were  enthusiasts 
in  the  field  of  speculative  philosophy  founded  upon  that  science.  Stimu- 
lated by  the  few  revelations  of  the  learning  of  the  East  which  commerce 


Chap.  XV. 


SETTLEMENTS  AND  COLONIES. 


485 


had  brought  into  Europe,  men  were  impelled  to  make  those  great  discoveries 
on  the  surface  of  our  planet,  which  were  soon  succeeded  by  the  marvels 
revealed  by  the  newly-found  telescope,  by  which  astronomy  was  released 
from  the  dull  chrysalis  of  astrology  and  allowed  to  soar  into  the  higher 
regions  of  celestial  truths. 

Then  followed  the  era  of  settlements.  To  this  end,  a desire  for  winning 
riches  was  the  first  powerful  impulse  given  to  men  and  women  that  led  them 
to  make  the  sacrifice.  It  was  soon  followed  by  the  higher  motives  which 
were  born  of  aspirations  for  personal,  intellectual  and  spiritual  liberty,  at  a 
time  Avhen  the  tocsin  or  alarm-bell  of  the  Reformation  had  aroused  the 
powers  of  church  and  state  into  the  most  active  opposition  to  everything 
which  seemed  to  endanger  their  absolute  domination.  These  motives  led  to 
the  plantation  of  devotees  of  freedom  in  isolated  communities  all  along  the 
Atlantic  seaboard  from  Maine  to  Florida. 

Then  followed  the  gradual  change  of  settlements  into  colonies.  We  have 
seen  how  many  0/  these  settlements  seemed,  at  first,  to  be  only  temporary 
asylums  from  the  grasp  of  oppression,  or  the  abiding-place  of  men  until 
they  should  get  sufficient  wealth  to  return  to  their  native  land  and  live  in 
ease.  But  many  of  them,  contrary  to  their  early  promise,  became  permanent 
colonies,  whose  members  determined  to  make  America  their  final  earthly 
abode.  We  have  traced  the  progress  of  these  colonies,  step  by  step,  from 
their  inception.  We  have  seen  how  the  spirit  of  liberty  which  pervaded 
these  communities  led  them  by  cautious  methods  to  assert  their  right  to  the 
exercise  of  self-government.  New  political  ideas  were  then  stirring  the 
popular  mind  in  Europe,  and  bold  thinkers  were  expressing  them  audibly 
and  through  the  new-born  printing-press.  These  were  the  seeds  of  repub- 
licanism which,  when  wafted  to  America,  found  here  a congenial  soil. 
These  ideas  took  vigorous  root,  as  we  have  seen,  in  every  community,  and 
flourished  even  among  the  sour  elements  of  theological  controversy  and  the 
persecution  of  bigots.  They  were  made  vigorous  by  the  peculiar  circum- 
stances of  the  colonists,  among  whom  existed  affinities  of  race,  language, 
and  Christian  tenets  of  great  strength,  and  they  were  accustomed  to  common 
political  institutions  and  thought.  These  formed  the  groundwork  in  the 
structure  of  each  colony  for  union,  and  composed  the  broad  foundations  of 
the  nation  that  was  finally  developed. 

We  have  traced,  in  rapid  outline,  the  history  of  each  of  these  colonies, 
showing  their  material  and  moral  growth,  their  advance  in  political  ideas  and 
practices  from  feudalism  to  independence,  and  their  general  condition  as 
great  and  flourishing  commonwealths,  animated  by  a national  spirit,  and 
coalescing  in  measures  for  the  defence  of  the  common  domain  on  which  they 


486 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  III. 


were  destined  to  raise  the  strong  and  beautiful  structure  of  our  Republic. 
It  now  remains  for  us  to  take  a brief  survey  of  the  history  of  the  French 
dominion  and  influence  among  the  savage  tribes  on  and  beyond  the  frontiers 
of  the  English  settlements  in  America,  and  to  view  the  social  condition  of 
the  European  colonists  who,  at  the  middle  of  the  last  century,  occupied  a 
selvedge  of  the  continent  along  the  Atlantic,  averaging  about  a hundred 
miles  in  width  and  almost  a thousand  miles  in  length. 

We  have  already  observed  that  the  French  in  America,  through  the 
influence  of  the  Jesuits,  made  a powerful  impression  upon  the  minds  of  the 
savages  of  this  country,  and  easily  persuaded  them  to  become  the  friends  of 
Frenchmen  in  peace  and  their  allies  in  war.  We  have  seen  how  the  seeds 
of  French  dominion  in  America  were  planted  by  Champlain  at  Quebec. 
He  had  selected  for  his  companions  and  spiritual  co-workers  some  of  the 
mild  and  benevolent  priests  of  the  Franciscan  Order,  who,  he  said,  were 
“ free  from  ambition,”  except  to  be  instrumental  in  the  salvation  of  souls. 
But  these  priests  were  not  sufficiently  aggressive  to  suit  the  ambitious 
Gallican  Church,  nor  worldly-wise  enough  to  serve  the  state  in  carrying  out 
its  political  designs  for  enlarging  its  dominions  in  America.  They  were 
withdrawn,  and  the  task  of  converting  the  heathen  of  Canada  and  serving 
the  church  and  state  at  the  same  time  was  entrusted  to  the  Jesuits.  With 
their  help  Champlain  established  an  alliance  with  the  Hurons  on  the  St. 
Lawrence  and  in  the  country  westward  ; and  so  began  that  wide-spread 
affiliation  of  the  French  and  Indians  that  became  so  disquieting  to  the 
English  colonists. 

So  early  as  1636  there  were  fifteen  Jesuit  priests  in  Canada — a band  of 
zealous,  obedient,  self-sacrificing  men,  ready  to  endure  every  privation  and 
encounter  every  danger  in  the  service  of  their  church.  At  an  assembly  of 
Huron  chiefs  and  sachems  at  Quebec,  Champlain  introduced  three  of  these 
black-robed  missionaries  to  his  savage  allies  as  men  who  were  to  teach  good 
things  for  themselves  and  their  children.  These  were  Brebeuf,  Daniel  and 
Davost.  With  faith  that  never  forsook  them,  these  men  followed  the  bare- 
footed Indians  through  the  dreadful  forests  of  the  Huron  dominions  stretch- 
ing along  the  northern  borders  of  the  St.  Lawrence  and  Lake  Ontario  to  the 
shores  of  Lake  Huron,  near  which  they  established  the  first  mission-house 
of  the  Jesuits  among  the  dusky  barbarians.  It  was  a journey  full  of  fatigue 
and  peril.  The  priests  shared  in  all  the  toil.  They  waded  streams  and 
swamps ; climbed  rocks ; plied  the  oar  when  on  the  waters ; assisted  in  carry- 
ing the  canoes  around  almost  forty  waterfalls ; slept  on  the  bare  earth  with 
no  covering  but  the  sky,  and  for  daily  bread  ate  pounded  Indian  corn  mixed 
with  water.  In  the  script  of  Brebeuf  were  materials  for  the  administration 


Chap.  XV. 


JESUIT  M1SSI0^•ARIES, 


487 


of  the  Holy  Communion  ; and  around  the  neck  of  each  was  a cord  that  held 
a heavy  breviary  or  order  of  the  daily  service  in  the  Roman  Catholic  Church. 
The  devotion  of  Brebeuf,  in  particular,  was  marvellous  in  the  eyes  of  the 
wondering  savages.  Twice  a day,  often,  he  whipped  his  own  bare  back  with 
hard  cords ; he  wore  a bristling  hair-shirt  next  to  his  skin,  and  under  it  an 
iron  girdle  studded  with  sharp  points ; and  while  others  slept,  he  “ watched 


PASSING  WATERFALLS. 


and  prayed.”  The  barbarians  regarded  him  with  reverence  and  awe,  as  the 
greatest  “ medicine  man  ” they  had  ever  known : and  when  he  told  them  of 
visits  he  had  received  from  the  Mother  of  God,  and  how  he  had  battled  with 
foul  fiends,  they  believed  him  ; and  it  was  not  long  before  whole  tribes  bowed 
at  altars  in  rude  Jesuit  chapels  in  the  forest,  and  became  nominal  Christians. 

32 


488 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  111. 


They  were  taught  to  believe  in  Jesus  as  the  guardian  .spirit  of  their  lives; 
and  that  it  was  he,  and  not  one  of  the  many  deities  with  which  they  had 
peopled  earth,  air  and  water,  that  had  all  along  afforded  them  protection  in 
great  perils.  So  the  Jesuits  took  a firm  grasp  of  the  savage  minds,  and  held 
a controlling  influence  over  the  children  of  the  forest  far  and  near,  from  the 
Gulf  of  St.  Lawrence  to  the  Gulf  of  Mexico.  The  Church  in  France,  and 
the  Pope,  took  a deep  interest  in  the  work ; and  a year  before  Massachusetts 
provided  for  the  establishment  of  a college  in  that  province,  one  was  founded 
in  Canada  for  the  education  of  Indian  boys.  And  very  soon  afterward  a 
young  and  rich  widow  of  France  established  the  Ursuline  Convent  at 
Quebec  for  the  education  and  religious  training  of  Indian  girls.  She  came 
with  three  nuns.  They  were  received  on  the  shore  at  Quebec  by  the 
governor  and  garrison  of  the  fort.  As  they  touched  the  ground  when 
stepping  from  the  boat,  these  devoted  women  stooped  and  kissed  the  earth 
in  token  of  their  adoption  of  the  country  as  their  home.  Then  they  were 
escorted  to  the  church,  followed  by  a crowd  of  Indian  men,  women  and 
children,  where  the  Te  Dcum  was  chanted  in  the  midst  of  thanksgivings. 

So  began  the  expansion  of  the  dominions  of  the  French  in  America.  In 
1640  they  took  possession  of  Montreal,  and  a united  prayer  went  up  from 
the  people  of  France  that  the  Queen  of  Angels  might  take  that  region 
under  her  protection.  Missionary  after  missionary  followed  ; and  in  the 
space  of  thirteen  years,  forty-two  of  them  had  carried  the  Gospel  and  French 
power  from  the  Niagara  River  to  the  remotest  bounds  of  Lake  Superior. 
They  established  mission-houses  here  and  there,  and  encountered  the 
greatest  perils  among  the  savages,  who  were  continually  at  war.  These 
Jesuits  carried  their  lives  in  their  hands,  and  often  lost  them.  Upon  those 
seemingly  weak  props  rested  the  fabric  of  French  colonization  in  America. 
At  times  these  props  seemed  to  be  giving  way,  for  whole  villages  of  converted 
Indians  would  sometimes  be  destroyed  in  an  hour  by  some  hostile  tribe,  and 
the  pitiful  sight  of  women  and  children  clinging  to  the  knees  of  the  priest 
for  protection  from  the  tomahawk  would  be  presented. 

In  1654,  two  young  traders  went  from  Quebec  to  the  wilderness  far  west- 
ward toward  the  Mississippi  River.  Two  years  afterward  they  returned  with 
fifty  canoes  and  a retinue  of  Indians.  Their  tales  of  the  magnificent 
countries  which  they  had  traversed  excited  great  enthusiasm,  and  the  church 
and  state  determined  to  possess  that  goodly  land.  Father  Alloiiez,  a daring 
Jesuit,  went  boldly  into  that  region.  Among  the  Chippewas  he  proclaimed 
the  King  of  France  as  their  sovereign,  and  built  mission-houses  there.  He 
preached  to  the  fiery  Sioux ; and  from  them  he  heard  of  the  magnificent 
Mississippi  River,  which  the  Indians  called  the  Father  of  Waters.  This 


Chap.  XV. 


MARQUETTE  ON  THE  MISSISSIPPL 


489 


intelligence  was  sent  back  to  Quebec,  and  Fathers  Marquette  and  Dablon, 
two  energetic  priests,  set  out  to  explore  the  mysterious  land  and  plant  the 
banner  of  the  Cross  in  the  very  heart  of  the  heathen  world.  Among  the 
Chippewas  they  labored  lovingly  for  their  God  and  their  king.  And  when 
Joliet,  an  agent  of  the  French  government  of  Canada,  arrived  there, 
Marquette  gave  him  efficient  aid  in  his  political  designs.  He  summoned  a 
convention  of  all  the  surrounding  tribes,  at  the  Falls  of  St.  Mary,  between 
Lakes  Superior  and  Huron,  where  he  had  erected  a rude  chapel  and  founded 
a mission.  There,  by  the  side  of  the  cross,  the  national  emblems  of  France 
were  raised  in  token  of  the  dominion  of  Louis  the  Fourteenth. 

Marquette  resolved  to  seek  for  the  Mississippi  River.  He,  an  “ambas- 
sador of  God,”  and  Joliet,  an  “envoy  to  discover  new  countries,”  went  up 
the  Fox  River  to  the  water-shed  between  the  Mississippi  and  the  Lakes,  in 
birch  canoes,  and  crossing  the  portage  went  down  the  Wisconsin  River  until 
its  waters  were  mingled  with  those  of  the  great  stream.  Late  in  June,  1673, 
they  were  upon  the  bosom  of  that  mighty  river  which  De  Soto  had  dis- 
covered, nearer  the  Gulf,  a century  and  a quarter  before.  The  Indians 
called  it  Mississippi,  which,  in  their  language,  signified  The  Great  Water. 
So  it  was  that  the  seeds  of  civilization  and  Christianity  were  first  planted  in 
the  Valley  of  the  Mississippi. 

Marquette  and  his  companions  spread  light  sails  over  their  canoes  and 
voyaged  quite  rapidly  on  the  bosom  of  the  Mississippi  with  winds  and 
currents,  past  the  inflowing  waters  of  the  Missouri  and  Ohio,  and  other  less 
tributaries,  stopping  on  the  shores  and  holding  friendly  intercourse  with  the 
natives.  At  length  they  reached  a point  below  the  mouth  of  the  Arkansas 
River,  where  they  found  a tribe  of  sun-worshippers  who  appeared  hostile. 
The  missionaries  would,  undoubtedly,  have  been  destroyed  had  not  a revered 
symbol  been  held  by  Marquette.  On  the  borders  of  Iowa  a chief  had 
presented  him  with  a beautifully  wrought  and  richly  ornamented  calumet, 
or  pipe  of  peace,  which  the  good  father  held  aloft.  Its  well-known  form, 
and  the  rich  plumage  that  adorned  it,  commanded  the  attention  of  the 
fierce  savages,  when  their  leader,  a venerable  man,  with  nine  others  in  an 
immense  log  canoe,  came  toward  those  of  Marquette  and  Joliet.  The  old 
man  bore  in  his  hand  a calumet,  and,  singing  as  he  approached,  he  offered 
it  to  Marquette  as  a token  of  friendship.  These  Indians  had  axes  of  steel, 
which  implied  intercourse  with  Europeans. 

Having  satisfied  himself  that  the  Mississippi  did  not  flow  into  the 
Atlantic  nor  the  Pacific  Ocean,  but  at  some  intermediate  receptacle, 
Marquette  turned  the  prow  of  his  canoe  northward,  and  he  and  Joliet 
reached  Green  Bay  before  the  frosts  of  October  were  seen  there.  Two  years 


490 


OUR  COUNTRY 


Book  III 


longer  Marquette  labored  among  the  barbarians  in  the  vicinity  of  Chicago, 
when  he  crossed  to  the  eastern  shore  of  Lake  Michigan.  Suffering  from 
mortal  sickness,  and  conscious  that  his  death  was  near,  he  passed  along  that 
shore  in  his  canoe,  propelled  by  two  men,  until  it  entered  a small  stream 
which  bore  his  name  a long  time  afterward.  They  carried  him  tenderly 
ashore,  and  laid  him  upon  the  leaves  in  the  shadows  of  the  forest.  He  told 


FATHER  MARQUETTE  AND  HIS  SYMBOL  OF  PEACE. 


them,  with  joy,  that  he  was  about  to  die,  but  requested  them  to  leave  him 
alone  while  they  should  unload  the  canoe ; and  promising  to  call  them  when 
his  end  should  be  nigh.  He  did  so  very  soon.  Then  he  asked  for  some 
holy  water  which  he  had  prepared,  and  taking  a crucifix  from  his  neck, 
placed  it  in  the  hands  of  one  of  his  companions  and  desired  him  to  hold  it 


DEATH  OF  FATHER  MARQUETTE. 


Chap.  XV". 


DEATH  OF  MARQUETTE. 


491 


constantly  before  his  eyes  while  he  lived.  With  clasped  hands  he  then 
pronounced  aloud  the  profession  of  his  faith,  and  soon  afterward  he  died,  as 
he  had  desired  to  do,  in  the  bosom  of  the  wilderness  in  the  service  of  his 
Master,  without  human  aid.  Then  his  companions  carried  him  to  a grave 
they  had  dug,  ringing  his  little  chapel  bell  which  he  had  brought  with  him 
and  so  wished  them  to  do.  Near  his  grave  they  erected  a large  cross  as  a 
mark  for  passers-by.  So  disappeared  the  mortal  remains  of  a discoverer  of 
the  Mississippi  and  the  founder  of  Michigan.  “The  people  of  the  West,” 
wrote  Bancroft  almost  forty  years  ago,  “ will  build  his  monument.”  Steps 
were  taken  late  in  1873  for  the  fulfillment  of  the  prophecy.  Marquette’s 
remains  lie  in  the  bosom  of  Michilimackinack  or  Mackinack. 

At  this  time  Robert  Cavalier  de  la  Salle,  a young  Frenchman  who  had 
been  educated  for  the  priesthood  in  a Jesuit  seminary,  but  who  preferred  a 
secular  life,  was  seated  at  the  foot  of  Lake  Ontario,  and  was  enjoying  a 
monopoly  of  the  fur  trade  with  the  Five  Nations  south  of  the  lake.  He 
had  built  a fort  on  the  site  of  modern  Kingston  and  named  it  Frontenac, 
in  honor  of  his  patron.  The  mild  Franciscans,  who  were  now  tolerated  in 
Canada,  were  carrying  on  their  religious  work  among  the  Indians  under  the 
favor  of  La  Salle. 

The  enterprising  young  Frenchman  had  been  stirred  by  accounts  of  the 
Spanish  voyages  to  America,  and  especially  by  the  adventures  of  De  Soto, 
and  the  events  attending  his  discovery  of  the  Mississippi  River  in  the 
warmer  regions  of  the  continent.  His  ambition  was  influenced  by  the  story 
of  Marquette’s  voyage  on  that  stream  so  mighty  in  the  higher  latitudes, 
with  a desire  to  become  a pioneer  in  those  far-off  regions  and  perfect  the 
explorations  of  the  “ Great  Water.”  He  had  heard,  also,  of  the  Ohio  River, 
and  the  beauty  and  wealth  of  the  country  through  which  it  flowed  ; and  he 
resolved  to  attempt  the  establishment  of  a widely-extended  commerce  with 
the  natives  there,  and,  if  possible,  plant  colonies  in  the  va.st  wilderness. 
With  these  aspirations  he  went  to  France,  and  there  found  favor  with 
Colbert,  the  famous  minister  of  Louis  the  Fourteenth. 

The  sagacity  of  Colbert  comprehended  the  possibilities  of  La  Salle’s 
scheme,  and  he  induced  the  king  to  extend  La  Salle’s  monopoly  of  the  fur 
trade  among  the  Indians,  and  to  give  him  a commission  to  perfect  the 
explorations  of  the  Mississippi  River.  With  some  mechanics  and  others, 
and  Tonti,  an  Italian,  as  his  lieutenant.  La  Salle  returned  to  Fort  Frontenac 
late  in  1678.  With  these,  and  Franciscan  priests,  in  a great  canoe,  they 
crossed  Lake  Ontario  and  went  up  the  Niagara  River  to  the  site  of  Lewis- 
ton. In  that  region  a trading-house  was  established  ; and  at  near  the  site  of 
Buffalo,  above  the  cataract,  they  built  a sailing  vessel  in  which  they  crossed 


492 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  III. 


the  lakes  to  Mackinack,  and  pushing  forward,  anchored  in  Green  Bay,  west 
of  Lake  Michigan.  From  Mackinack  or  Mackinaw,  La  Salle  sent  back  his 
brig  laden  with  a rich  cargo  of  furs,  and  awaited  her  return.  He  tarried 
impatiently  among  the  Miamies  at  Chicago,  for  some  time,  when  with  Tonti, 
Father  Hennepin  and  two  other  Franciscans,  and  about  thirty  followers,  he 
boldly  penetrated  the  wilderness  westward  on  foot  and  in  canoes,  until  he 
reached  Lake  Peoria,  in  Illinois.  There  he  built  a fort,  and  sent  I'ather 
Hennepin  forward  to  explore  the  Upper  Mississippi,  while  he  returned  to 
Frontenac  to  look  after  his  property. 

Hennepin,  with  two  oarsmen, 
went  down  the  Illinois  River  to 
the  “Great  Water,”  which  they 
reached  late  in  March.  When 
the  floating  ice  in  the  Missis- 
sippi had  passed  by,  he  invoked 
the  aid  of  St.  Anthony  of  Padua, 
and  ascended  the  stream  to  the 
great  falls  which  bear  the  name 
of  his  patron  saint.  Hennepin 
was  a man  much  given  to  ro- 
mancing, and  permitting  the 
creations  of  imagination  to  be 
represented  as  realities.  He 
claimed  to  have  discovered  the 
source  of  the  Mississippi,  when 
it  is  known  that  he  never  went 
above  the  Falls  of  St.  Anthony. 
These  he  described  with  toler- 
able accuracy,  and  near  them  he 
carved  a cross  and  the  arms  of 
France  upon  the  forest  trees. 
In  the  autumn  of  1680  he  re- 
FATHER  HENNE.»iN  AT  ST  anthony’s  FALLS.  tumed  to  Groen  Buy  by  the  way 

of  the  Wisconsin  and  Fox  rivers. 
In  the  meantime  Tonti  had  been  driven  out  of  Illinois  by  the  savages,  and 
had  taken  refuge  among  the  barbarians  on  the  western  shore  of  Lake 
Michigan. 

La  Salle  returned  to  the  Illinois  country  with  men  and  supplies  for  an 
exploration  of  the  Mississippi.  That  enterprise  was  undertaken  early  in 
1682.  La  Salle  was  accompanied  by  twenty-three  Frenchmen,  and  eighteen 


Chap.  XV. 


LA  SALLE  ON  THE  MISSISSIPPI. 


493 


New  England  Indians  with  ten  women  and  three  children.  They  reached 
the  Mississippi  in  February,  and  embarked  upon  its  bosom  in  a strong  and 
spacious  barge  which  had  been  constructed,  and  his  people  followed  in 
canoes.  They  descended  the  Mississippi  to  the  Gulf  of  Mexico,  everywhere 
observing  the  evidences  of  unbounded  wealth  in  the  bosom  of  the  soil  along 
its  course.  They  stopped  at  many  places  and  held  intercourse  with  the 
natives,  who  came  to  the  river  banks  in  large  numbers  to  meet  them.  At 
one  place  below  the  mouth  of  the  Arkansas  River,  they  found  a powerful 
king  over  many  tribes,  to  whom  La  Salle  sent  presents.  His  embassadors 
were  received  with  great  respect,  and  the  monarch  sent  word  by  them  that 
he  should  visit  their  chief  in  person.  He  came  in  great  state.  He  was 
preceded  by  two  horses,  and  by  a master  of  ceremonies  with  six  men,  who 
cleared  the  ground  over  which  his  majesty  was  to  pass,  and  erected  a pavilion 
of  mats  to  shield  the  king  from  the  sun.  The  monarch  was  dressed  in  a 
white  robe  falling  to  his  knee,  that  had  been  beautifully  woven  of  the  inner 
bark  of  trees.  He  was  on  foot,  and  was  preceded  by  two  men  bearing 
immense  feather  fans  as  white  as  snow.  A third  carried  plates  of  copper 
highly  polished.  With  grave  demeanor  and  gracious  words,  he  held  an 
interview  with  La  Salle,  and  they  parted  with  mutual  assurances  of  friend- 
ship. The  people  over  whom  the  king  ruled  were  a part  of  those  bar- 
barians of  the  Gulf  region  who  worshipped  the  sun.  They  were  called 
Taenses. 

La  Salle  proceeded  southward,  planted  a cross  and  the  arms  of  France 
on  the  borders  of  the  Gulf  of  Mexico,  and  proclaimed  that  the  whole 
Mississippi  Valley  was  a part  of  the  dominions  of  King  Louis.  He  named 
the  magnificent  domain  Louisiana  in  honor  of  that  monarch,  who  was  then 
at  the  height  of  his  power.  So  was  planted  in  the  heart  of  our  continent 
the  germ  of  the  French  empire  that  grew  up  there  early  in  the  eighteenth 
century. 

Having  performed  this  great  service.  La  Salle  went  back  to  Quebec,  and 
thence  hastened  to  France  and  laid  a report  of  his  great  discovery  before 
the  delighted  court.  Colbert  was  dead,  but  his  son  was  in  power  and 
inherited  his  father’s  genius  and  enterprise.  He  procured  for  La  Salle  the 
king’s  commission  to  colonize  Louisiana.  With  four  ships  and  almost  three 
hundred  emigrants.  La  Salle  sailed  from  Rochelle  late  in  July,  1684,  for  the 
Mississippi  River  by  way  of  St.  Domingo.  His  company  was  composed  of 
one  hundred  soldiers,  and  the  remainder  (one  hundred  and  eighty  souls) 
were  chiefly  artisans  and  farmers,  with  a few  young  w'omen.  Unfortunately 
Beaujeu,  the  commander  of  the  ships,  was  cold  and  proud.  He  could  not 
comprehend  the  lofty  purposes  of  La  Salle,  and  often  thwarted  them  in  a 


494 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  111. 


degree.  His  pride  would  not  allow  him  to  listen  to  La  Salle,  and  caused 
him  to  miss  the  mouths  of  the  Mississippi  while  sailing  westward  over  the 
Gulf  of  Mexico.  They  soon  found  themselves  in  Matagorda  Bay,  on  the 
coasts  of  Texas,  and  there  La  Salle  determined  to  disembark.  His  store- 
ship  was  wrecked  at  the  entrance  to  the  bay,  and  its  precious  cargo  was 
scattered  over  the  bosom  of  the  sea  by  a gale  that  arose  in  the  evening. 
Despondency  seized  a part  of  the  company,  and  they  returned  to  the  vessels. 
The  remainder  adhered  to  La  Salle.  The  ships  with  the  timid  ones  sailed 
away  to  France,  leaving  two  hundred  and  thirty  emigrants  on  the  beach. 
These,  with  La  Salle  for  the  architect,  soon  constructed  a fort  on  a stream 
that  flowed  into  the  western  part  of  Matagorda  Bay,  and  called  it  Fort  St. 
Louis.  This  was  the  beginning  of  the  settlement  of  Texas,  and  so  it  was 
made  a portion  of  Louisiana.  France  took  possession  of  the  domain,  and 
caused  the  arms  of  the  kingdom  to  be  carved  on  the  great  trees  of  the  forest 
there. 

La  Salle  now  proposed  to  seek  the  Mississippi.  In  December,  1685,  he 
departed,  with  some  of  his  men.  They  forded  small  streams,  crossed  the 
larger  ones  on  rafts  which  they  constructed,  and  encountered  many  fearful 
perils.  One  man  was  eaten  up  by  alligators.  The  bite  of  a rattlesnake 
killed  another.  Some  of  the  Indians  were  hostile.  Discontent  arose  in  the 
party  and  some  of  the  men  deserted.  La  Salle  had  penetrated  almost  to 
the  Red  River,  when  his  necessities  compelled  him  to  retrace  his  steps. 
When  he  reached  the  fort  he  had  a dozen  men  less  than  when  he  departed. 

La  Salle  was  now  allured  in  another  direction  by  stories  concerning  rich 
mines  in  New  Mexico.  With  a few  followers  he  started  in  search  of  the 
treasures.  He  found  a country  wealthy  in  fertile  soils,  but  not  in  precious 
metals ; and  he  returned  to  the  fort  disappointed.  That  was  in  the  spring 
of  1 686. 

La  Salle  now  determined  to  go  to  Canada  for  reinforcements  and  supplies 
for  his  colony  in  Louisiana.  Leaving  a garrison  at  Fort  St.  Louis,  he 
departed  with  sixteen  men  and  five  wild  horses  which  he  had  procured  in 
New  Mexico.  They  had  crossed  Texas  to  the  uplands  of  Trinity  River, 
when  some  of  the  men  became  mutinous.  Two  of  them,  who  had  embarked 
all  their  fortunes  in  the  enterprise,  and  who  blamed  La  Salle  for  their  losses, 
conspired  against  his  life.  One  of  them,  named  Duhaut,  invited  one  of  La 
Salle’s  nephews  (who  was  of  the  party)  to  go  with  him  on  a buffalo  hunt. 
Duhaut  quarrelled  with  the  young  man,  and  murdered  him.  The  leader, 
ignorant  of  the  cause  of  his  nephew’s  absence,  went  in  search  of  him,  and 
found  the  two  conspirators  near  the  brink  of  the  river.  Duhaut  hid  in  the 
grass,  but  his  companion  approached  La  Salle  with  apparent  friendliness. 


Chap.  XV. 


THE  FRENCH  DOMINION  IN  AMERICA. 


495 


“Where  is  my  nephew?”  inquired  the  leader.  He  was  answered  by  a 
musket-ball  from  the  skulking  Duhaut,  and  fell  dead.  Then  the  conspirators 
plundered  his  body,  and  left  it  to  be  devoured  by  eagles  and  wolves.  Joutel 
(a  friend  of  La  Salle),  and  two  of  the  great  leader’s  kinsmen,  escaped,  made 
their  way  to  the  Mississippi,  and  returned  to  Canada  with  the  sad  tidings  of 
the  explorer’s  death. 

The  French  had  now  traversed  the  interior  of  America  from  Newfound- 
land and  Nova  Scotia  by  way  of  the  St.  Lawrence,  the  chain  of  the  great 
lakes  and  the  Mississippi  River,  to  the  Gulf  of  Mexico,  and  asserted  the 
authority  of  King  Louis  everywhere.  Trading-posts,  mission-stations,  and 
colonies  followed  in  the  path  of  the  explorers.  New  Orleans  was  founded 
early  in  the  eighteenth  century.  Other  places  were  settled  on  the  Missis- 
sippi, the  Illinois,  and  the  lakes.  At  the  middle  of  the  last  century,  the 
French  claimed  dominion  over  the  whole  continent  north  of  the  Spanish 
possessions,  excepting  the  narrow  border  of  territory  on  the  sea-coasts 
occupied  by  the  English.  They  coveted  the  whole  country,  and  resolved  to 
possess  it.  Their  alliance  with  the  Indians,  through  the  influence  of  the 
Jesuits,  had  that  permanent  object  in  view;  and  we  have  seen  how  fearfully 
those  allies  worked  along  the  frontier  settlements  of  New  England,  with 
torch  and  hatchet,  to  accomplish  that  end.  Had  they  succeeded  in  their 
attempted  conquest  of  New  England,  the  Iroquois  Confederacy,  that  stood 
like  a wall  of  defence  for  the  settlers  in  New  York  and  Pennsylvania,  might 
have  been  swept  away,  and  the  day-dreams  of  Louis  the  Fourteenth,  that 
he  was  to  become  sole  master  of  North  America,  been  realized.  The 
struggle  for  that  mastery  continued  forty-five  years  after  his  death,  and  was 
ended  only  when  the  English  had  destroyed  French  dominion  in  America, 
by  force  of  arms,  and  by  conquest  stripped  France  of  a great  portion  of  its 
claimed  territory  in  our  country. 


CHAPTER  XVI. 


NATIONALITIES  OF  THE  AMERICAN  COLONISTS — THEIR  SOCIAL  CHARACTERISTICS — THEIR  INDUS- 
TRIES  AND  COMMERCIAL  RESTRICTIONS — THEIR  EDUCATIONAL  INSTITUTIONS — NEWSPAPERS  IN 
THE  COLONIES — THE  TENDENCY  OF  THE  PEOPLE  TO  LOCAL  SELF-GOVERNMENT  AND  UNION 
— PLANS  FOR  A NATIONAL  UNION— CONGRESSES — DESIGNS  OF  THE  ROYAL  GOVERNORS — A 
CRISIS— LORDS  OF  TRADE  AND  PLANTATIONS — RESISTANCE  TO  THE  ROYAL  PREROGATIVE — 
COMPLAINTS  BY  ROYALISTS  IN  AMERICA — REVOLUTION  PREVENTED  BY  THE  FRENCH  AND 
INDIAN  WAR. 

SEVERAL  European  nations,  as  we  have  seen,  contributed  materials 
for  the  English-American  colonies.  They  were  people  of  varied  and 
opposite  tastes,  habits  and  theological  views,  but,  as  a rule,  they  com- 
mingled without  asperity ; and  when  the  time  came  for  a political  union, 
no  serious  antagonisms  were  apparent.  Churchmen  and  Dissenters,  Roman 
Catholics,  Puritans  and  Friends,  finally  settled  down  quietly  together,  and 
labored  with  a generous  faith  in  each  other  for  the  public  good.  The 
Puritans  of  New  England,  the  Friends  of  Pennsylvania,  the  Roman  Catholics 
of  Maryland  and  the  Churchmen  of  Virginia,  though  often  narrow  in  their 
theological  views,  manifested  a common  love  of  liberty,  and  acted  upon  the 
common  rule  that  the  majority  should  govern. 

A great  majority  of  the  emigrants  who  settled  the  English  domain  in 
America  were  of  Teutonic  origin.  The  English,  Lowland  Scotch,  Dutch 
and  Swedes,  were  decidedly  of  German  blood.  The  Irish  and  French  were 
few  at  first.  Denmark  and  the  Baltic  regions  contributed  a considerable 
number,  and  natives  from  Africa  were  soon  scattered  among  the  white 
population  of  all  the  colonies.  With  the  exception  of  Georgia,  the  emi- 
grants had  founded  settlements  and  colonies  without  the  aid  of  the  British 
government,  and  often  in  defiance  of  its  expressed  wishes  and  absolute 
decrees.  Subjects  of  the  same  perils  and  hardships,  there  grew  up  among 
them,  insensibly,  a brotherhood  of  feeling  that  prepared  the  people  of 
thirteen  of  the  colonies,  after  uniting  in  resistance  to  the  aggressions  of  the 
French  during  a war  of  more  than  seven  years  duration,  to  resist,  almost  as 
one  man,  every  form  of  oppression,  when  the  government  to  which  they 
acknowledged  their  allegiance  became  an  oppressor. 

There  was  a great  diversity  of  character  seen  among  the  inhabitants  of 


Chap.  XVI. 


HABITS  OF  THE  PURITANS. 


497 


the  several  colonies,  owing,  chiefly,  to  their  origin,  early  habits,  and  the 
climate.  Those  of  Virginia  were  from  classes  in  English  society  wherein  a 
lack  of  rigid  moral  discipline  allowed  free  living  and  its  attendant  vices. 
This  circumstance,  combined  with  the  influence  of  a mild  climate,  produced 
a tendency  to  voluptuousness  and  ease  among  the  Virginians  and  their 
southern  neighbors.  They  generally  exhibited  less  moral  restraint,  more 
hospitality,  and  greater  frankness  and  social  refinement,  than  the  people  of 
New  England.  The  latter  were  from  the  middling  classes  of  society.  They 
included  a great  many  religious  enthusiasts,  possessing  more  zeal  than 
knowledge.  Very  rigid  in  their  manners,  shy  and  jealous  of  strangers,  they 


CAVALIER.  PURITAN.  HOLLANDER.  FRIEND. 

COSTUMES  OF  THE  SETTLERS  IN  AMERICA. 


were  extremely  strict  in  their  notions,  and  attempted  to  regulate  the  habits 
and  tastes  of  society  by  formal  standards.  Their  early  legislation,  as  we 
have  seen,  recognizing  as  it  did  the  right  to  control  the  most  minute  regula- 
tions of  social  life,  often  presents  food  for  merriment  for  their  descendants. 
The  General  Court  of  Massachusetts,  on  one  occasion,  required  the  proper 
officers  to  notice  the  “ apparel  ” of  the  people,  especially  their  “ ribbands 
and  great  boots.”  Drinking  of  healths  in  public  or  private  ; wearing  funeral 
badges ; celebrating  the  Church  festivals  of  Christmas  and  Easter,  and  many 
other  things  that  seemed  quite  improper  to  magistrates  and  legislators,  and 
especially  to  the  Puritan  clergy,  were  forbidden.  At  Hartford,  the  General 
Court  kept  an  eye  constantly  upon  the  conduct  of  the  people.  Freemen 


498 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  111. 


were  compelled  to  vote  under  a penalty  of  six-pence ; the  use  of  tobacco 
was  prohibited  to  persons  under  twenty  years  of  age,  without  the  certificate 
of  a physician  ; and  no  others  were  allowed  to  use  it  more  than  once  a day, 
and  then  they  must  be  more  than  ten  miles  from  any  house.  The  people  of 
Hartford  were  compelled  to  rise  in  the  morning  when  the  watchman  rang 
his  bell.  And  so,  in  a great  variety  of  enactments,  the  law-makers,  with 
pure  intentions,  noble  purposes  and  virtuous  aims,  tried  to  make  the  whole 
people  Christians  after  their  own  pattern.  If  they  did  not  accomplish  these 
higher  designs,  they  erected  strong  bulwarks  against  the  smaller  vices  which 
compose,  in  a great  degree,  private  and  public  evils.  They  dwelt  upon  a 
parsimonious  soil.  Possessing  neither  the  means  nor  the  inclination  for 
sumptuous  living  indulged  in  by  their  southern  brethren,  the  New  Eng- 
landers lived  in  very  plain  houses  afid  their  habits  were  frugal. 

The  ideas,  manners,  customs  and  pursuits  of  the  Dutch  made  a deep 
impression  upon  the  colonists  of  New  York  and  portions  of  New  Jersey  and 
Pennsylvania,  which  is  not  yet  effaced,  but  appears  conspicuous  in  many 
places.  They  were  a race  of  industrious,  frugal,  plodding  money-getters, 
loving  personal  ease  and  freedom  from  disturbance.  They  possessed  very 
few  of  the  elements  of  progress.  They  were  constitutionally  averse  to 
change,  and  had  very  little  faith  in  anything  not  known  to  their  fathers. 
They  were  distinguished  by  many  of  the  more  substantial  virtues  that  are 
necessary  in  giving  health  to  society  and  stability  to  a State.  The  Swedes 
and  Finns  on  the  Delaware  did  not  differ  much  from  the  Dutch  in  their 
general  characteristics;  but  the  habits  of  the  Friends,  whose  influence  pre- 
dominated in  West  Jersey  and  Pennsylvania,  were  quite  different.  There 
was  a refined  simplicity  in  the  manners  and  habits  of  the  latter  that  won  the 
esteem  and  confidence  of  virtuous  and  cultivated  people,  and  the  respect  of 
every  class.  They  made  no  ostentatious  display  in  their  dress  or  of  their 
piety.  They  were  governed  in  their  daily  life  by  a religious  sentiment  with- 
out fanaticism,  which  was  a powerful  safeguard  against  vice  and  immorality. 

The  Maryland  settlers  were  greater  formalists  in  religion  and  less 
restrained  in  their  conduct  than  the  New  Englanders  or  the  Dutch.  They 
were  generally  more  refined  than  the  colonists  of  the  East,  and  equally 
industrious,  but  they  lacked  the  unwearied  perseverance  in  pursuits  of  the 
latter.  As  in  New  England,  so  in  Maryland,  the  peculiarities  of  the  inhab- 
itants had  been  greatly  modified  by  inter-migration  at  the  middle  of  the  last 
century.  Religious  intolerance  had  been  subdued ; and  when  common 
danger  called  for  common  defenders  of  the  soil  and  of  the  chartered  rights 
of  the  colonists,  they  stood  shoulder  to  shoulder  in  battle-array  and  in  legis- 
lative halls. 


Chap.  XVI. 


INDUSTRIAL  PURSUITS  IN  THE  COLONIES. 


499 


The  principal  pursuit  of  the  English-American  colonists  was  agriculture. 
At  the  time  we  are  considering,  commerce  and  manufactures  were  struggling 
here  against  unwise  and  unjust  laws  for  existence.  With  forced  self-reliance, 
the  people  had  been  compelled,  from  the  beginning,  to  make  their  own 
apparel,  their  simple  furniture,  and  their  implements  for  labor,  which  they 
could  not  buy  from  the  looms  and  workshops  of  Old  England  ; and  manual 
labor  was  regarded  as  honorable  and  dignified,  especially  in  New  England 
and  the  immediately  adjoining  provinces.  The  evil  example  of  an  idle 
privileged  class  was  never  before  the  settlers  in  the  forests  of  America. 

The  commerce  of  the  English-American  colonies  had  a feeble  infancy, 
and  was  stunted  in  its  growth  by  oppressive  navigation  laws.  Indeed,  their 
trade  may  not  properly  be  dignified  with  the  name  of  commerce  before  the 
Revolution.  So  early  as  1636,  a Massachusetts  vessel  of  thirty  tons  made  a 
voyage  to  the  West  Indies ; and  two  years  later  another  vessel  went  from 
Salem  to  New  Providence,  and  returned  with  a cargo  of  cotton,  salt,  tobacco 
and  negroes.  This  was  the  beginning  of  negro  slavery  in  New  England. 
It  was  recognized  by  law  in  Massachusetts,  in  1641  ; in  Connecticut  and 
Rhode  Island,  about  the  year  1650;  in  New  York,  in  1656;  in  Maryland,  in 
1663;  and  in  New  Jersey,  in  1665.  There  were  but  a few  slaves  in  Pennsyl- 
vania. Some  were  there  as  early  as  1690,  and  were  chiefly  in  Philadelphia. 
At  about  the  same  time  a few  appeared  in  Delaware.  In  Virginia,  as  we 
have  seen,  they  were  introduced  in  1619;  and  in  the  Carolinas,  at  the  time 
of  their  settlement.  By  an  evasion  of  law  they  were  taken  into  Georgia 
about  the  year  1752. 

The  successful  voyages  of  these  vessels  from  Massachusetts  were  regarded 
with  joy,  as  the  harbingers  of  a flourishing  American  commerce ; and  the 
New  England  people,  especially,  looked  forward  with  expectations  of  much 
wealth  to  be  derived  from  the  ocean,  for  they  were  then  quite  extensively 
engaged  in  fishing.  But  a navigation  act  passed  by  the  republican  parlia- 
ment in  1651,  gave  them  warning  of  English  jealousy;  and  its  restoration, 
with  more  stringent  clauses,  by  the  royal  parliament  in  1660,  satisfied  the 
colonists  that  their  commerce  was  doomed,  because  it  seemed  to  be  regarded 
as  a promising  rival  of  that  of  Great  Britain.  After  that  the  attention  of 
parliament  was  called  from  time  to  time  to  the  industries  of  the  American 
colonies,  and  laws  were  made  to  regulate  them.  In  1719,  the  House  of  Com- 
mons declared  that  “ erecting  any  manufactories  in  the  colonies  tended  to 
lessen  their  dependence  on  Great  Britain,”  and  they  were  discouraged.  A 
little  earlier  a British  author  had  written  : “ There  be  fine  iron  works  which 
cast  no  guns;  no  house  in  New  England  has  above  twenty  rooms;  not 
twenty  in  Boston  have  ten  rooms  each ; a dancing-school  was  set  up  here,. 


500 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  111. 


but  put  down ; a fencing-school  is  allowed.  There  be  no  musicians  by 
trade.  All  cordage,  sail-cloth  and  mats,  come  from  England ; no  cloth 
made  there  worth  four  shillings  per  yard ; no  alum,  no  salt  made  by  their 
sun.” 

Later,  woolen-goods,  paper  and  hemp  were  manufactured  in  New  Eng- 
land, and  almost  every  family  made  coarse  cloth  for  domestic  use.  A heavy 
duty  had  been  laid  on  pig-iron  sent  from  the  colonies  to  England,  and  the 
Americans  made  successful  attempts  to  manufacture  it  into  bars  for  native 
blacksmiths,  and  to  make  steel.  Hats,  also,  were  manufactured  and  sold  in 
different  colonies ; and  small  brigantines  (square-rigged,  two-masted  vessels) 
were  built  in  Massachusetts  and  Pennsylvania,  and  exchanged  with  West 
India  merchants  for  rum,  sugar,  wines,  and  silks.  Again  the  jealousy  of  the 
British  government  was  awakened,  and  greater  restrictions  upon  colonial 
manufactures  were  imposed,  they  being  foolishly  considered  as  detrimental 
to  the  interests  of  the  English  at  home.  It  was  ordained  by  a law  that  all 
manufacturers  of  iron  and  steel  in  the  colonies  should  be  considered  “a 
nuisance  ” to  be  abated  within  thirty  days  after  notice  being  given,  under  a 
penalty  of  one  thousand  dollars.  A law  was  enacted  in  1750  which  pro- 
hibited the  “ erection  or  continuance  of  any  mill  or  other  engine  for  slitting 
or  rolling-iron,  or  any  plating-forge  to  work  with  a tilt-hammer,  or  any 
furnace  for  making  steel  in  the  colonies.”  The  exportations  of  hats  from 
one  colony  to  another  was  prohibited ; and  no  hatter  was  allowed  to  have 
more  than  two  apprentices  at  one  time.  The  importation  of  sugar,  molasses 
and  rum  was  burdened  with  exorbitant  duties  ; and  the  Carolinians  were 
actually  forbidden  to  cut  down  a tree  in  their  vast  pine  forests  for  the 
purpose  of  converting  its  wood  into  staves,  or  its  juices  into  turpentine. 
The  raising  of  sheep  in  the  colonies  was  restrained,  because  wool  was  then 
the  great  staple  of  England.  The  interests  of  the  landed  aristocracy  were 
consulted  more  than  justice.  In  the  preamble  to  a restraining  act,  it  was 
avowed  that  the  motive  for  its  enactment  was  a conviction  that  colonial 
industry  would  “ inevitably  sink  the  value  of  lands  in  England.”  And  so, 
for  about  a hundred  years,  the  British  government  had  attempted,  by 
restrictive  laws,  to  confine  the  commerce  of  the  colonies  to  the  interchange 
of  their  agricultural  products  for  English  manufactures  only.  The  trade  of 
the  colonies  was  certainly  worth  preserving,  for  the  exports  from  Great 
Britain  to  them  averaged,  in  value,  at  that  period,  about  three-and-a-quarter 
million  dollars  annually.  But  the  unrighteous  measures  adopted  to  secure 
that  trade  produced  (as  unrighteousness  generally  does  in  the  end)  a great 
loss.  These  acts  of  oppression  constituted  the  chief  item  in  the  “ bill  of 
particulars”  presented  by  the  Americans  in  the  account  with  Great  Britain 


Chap.  XVI. 


EDUCATION  IN  THE  COLONIES. 


501 


when,  on  the  fourth  of  July,  1776,  they  gave  to  the  world  their  reasons  for 
declaring  themselves  “ free  and  independent  ” of  the  British  crown. 

Education  had  received  special  attention  in  most  of  the  colonies,  and 
particularly  in  New  England,  from  the  beginning.  So  early  as  1621,  schools 
were  established  in  Virginia  for  the  education  of  white  and  Indian  children. 
This  was  the  first  provision  for  education  made  in  the  colonies.  For  reasons 
not  clearly  defined,  these  schools  did  not  flourish,  and  the  funds  appropriated 
for  their  support  were  finally  given  to  the  trustees  of  William  and  Mary 
College,  which  was  founded  at  Williamsburg,  in  Virginia,  in  1692.  Fifty- 
four  years  before,  the  Rev.  John  Harvard  had  given  half  his  estate  and  three 
hundred  of  his  books  for  the  founding  of  the  college  at  Cambridge,  Massa- 
chusetts, which  bears  his  name.  And  eight 
years  after  the  establishment  of  William  and 
Mary  College,  ten  clergymen  met  at 
Saybrook,  near  the  mouth  of  the 
Connecticut  River,  and  each  con- 
tributing some  books, 
took  measures  for  found- 


ELIHU  YALE. 

SEAL  OF  HARVARD  COLLEGE. 


GREAT  SEAL  OF  WILLIAM  AND  MARY. 


ing  a college  there.  It  was  accomplished  in  1701.  The  most  generous 
patron  of  the  institution  in  its  infancy  was  Elihu  Yale,  then  president  of  the 
Engli.sh  East  India  Company.  He  was  born  in  New  Haven,  Connecticut. 
His  name  was  given  to  the  college,  and  in  1717  it  was  removed  to  the  place 
of  his  nativity,  where  it  still  flourishes.  King’s  (now  Columbia)  College  was 
established  in  the  city  of  New  York  in  1750;  and  these  four  seminaries  com- 


502 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  III. 


posed  the  chief  seats  of  learning  in  the  English-American  colonies  when  the 
French  and  Indian  war  broke  out. 

While  these  higher  institutions  of  learning  were  struggling  even  for  exist- 
ence, the  common  schools — the  glory  and  pride  of  New  England  especially 
— were  flourishing.  At  the  beginning  of  the  existence  of  the  Connecticut 
colony,  a law  provided  that  every  town — organized  religious  communities — 
containing  one  hundred  householders,  should  maintain  a grammar  school. 
Similar  provision  was  made  for  popular  education  throughout  New  England, 
and  that  region  was  soon  conspicuous  for  the  intelligence  of  its  people. 
The  school  teacher  in  many  places  had  a variety  of  duties,  so  that  his  time 
was  wholly  employed  in  and  out  of  school.  At  Portsmouth,  New  Hamp- 
shire, an  ordinance  of  the  selectmen  defined  the  duties  of  the  schoolmaster, 
as  follows:  “To  act  as  a court  messenger;  to  serve  summonses;  to  lead  the 
choir  on  Sundays  ; to  ring  the  bell  for  public  worship ; to  dig  the  graves ; to 
take  charge  of  the  school,  and  to  perform  other  occasional  duties.” 

Reading  took  the  place  of  frivolous  amusements,  which  were  discouraged 
by  law  in  New  England.  History  and  theology  were  the  chief  topics  of 
most  of  the  books  then  read  in  that  region,  and  many  volumes  were  sold. 
A traveler  mentioned  the  fact  that  before  the  year  1686,  several  booksellers 
in  Boston  had  “made  fortunes  by  their  business.” 

In  time  newspapers  began  to  appear  in  the  colonies,  but  were  of  little 
worth,  as  vehicles  of  general  information,  until  the  period  of  our  Revolution. 
The  first  one  issued  in  America  was  published  in  Boston  in  September,  1690. 
It  was  printed  on  three  pages  seven  by  eleven  inches  square,  on  a folded 
sheet,  and  was  entitled  “ Public  Occurrences  both  Foreign  and  Domestic.” 
The  editor  said  of  it : “ It  is  designed  that  the  country  shall  be  furnished  once 
a month  (or  if  any  glut  of  occurrences  happen,  oftener)  with  an  account  of 
such  considerable  things  as  have  arrived  unto  our  notice.”  And  he  gave 
warning  in  his  first  number  that  his  paper  should  be  the  vehicle  for  exposing 
slanderers  and  false  reporters,  saying : “ It  is  supposed  that  none  will  dislike 
this  proposal,  but  such  as  intend  to  be  guilty  of  so  villainous  a crime.”  Only 
one  number  of  this  newspaper  was  published.  The  first  permanent  news- 
paper was  “The  Boston  News-Letter,”  first  issued  in  the  spring  of  1704. 
The  first  in  Pennsylvania  was  “ The  American,”  published  in  Philadelphia  in 
1719.  The  first  in  New  York  was  “The  New  York  Gazette,”  in  1725  I tke 
first  in  Maryland  was  the  “ Maryland  Gazette,”  issued  at  Annapolis  in  the 
summer  of  1728.  “The  South  Carolina  Gazette,”  printed  at  Charleston  at 
the  beginning  of  1732,  was  the  first  issued  in  that  province;  the  first  in 
Rhode  Island  was  “The  Rhode  Island  Gazette,”  printed  at  Newport  in 
1732;  the  first  in  Virginia  was  “ The  Virginia  Gazette,”  printed  at  Williams- 


Chap.  XVI. 


POPULATION  OF  THE  COLONIES  IN  1 754- 


503 


burg  in  1736;  the  first  in  Connecticut  was  “The  Connecticut  Gazette,” 
printed  at  New  Haven  in  1755  ; the  first  in  North  Carolina  was  “The  North 
Carolina  Gazette,”  printed  at  New  Berne  the  same  year;  and  the  first  in 

New  Hampshire  was  “The  New  Hampshire 
Gazette,”  printed  at  Portsmouth  in  the  sum- 
mer of  1756.  At  the  period  of  the  French 
and  Indian  war  newspapers  were  printed  in  all 
of  the  colonies  excepting  in  New  Jersey,  Dela- 
ware and  Georgia.  The  printing-machines  on 

which  all  the  colonial 
newspapers  and  books 
were  printed  were  sim- 
ple in  form  and  rude  in 
construction,  as  may  be 
seen  in  the  picture  of 
the  Ephrata  printing- 
press  here  given. 

Of  the  number  of 
the  inhabitants  of  the 
colonies  at  that  time, 
THE  EPHRATA  pRi.sTiNc-PREss.  we  liave  no  exact  enu- 

meration. Mr.  Ban- 
croft, after  a careful  examination  of  many  official  returns  and  private  com- 
putations, estimated  the  number  of  white  inhabitants  of  all  the  colonies  to 
be  1,165,000,  and  the  blacks  (who  were  mostly  slaves)  to  be  260,000,  dis- 
tributed as  follows : 


Massachusetts 

WHITE. 

BLACK. 

3,000 

Pennsylvania  and  Delaware. 

WHITE. 

195,000 

BLACK. 

11,000 

New  Hampshire 

Maryland 

104,000 

44,000 

Connecticut 

133.000 

3.500 

Virginia 

168,000 

116,000 

Rhode  Island 

35.000 

4.500 

North  Carolina 

70,000 

20,000 

New  York 

11,000 

South  Carolina 

40,000 

40,000 

New  Jersey 

5.000 

Georgia 

5,000 

2,000 

Since  the  English  Revolution  in  1688 — a period  of  only  sixty-six  years — 
the  growth  of  the  colonies  in  population  had  been  marvellous.  New 
England  had  increased  from  75,000  to  425,000;  New  York,  from  20,000  to 
85,000;  New  Jersey,  Pennsylvania,  Delaware  and  Maryland,  from  47,000  to 
372,000;  Virginia,  from  50,000  to  168,000;  and  the  Carolinas  and  Georgia, 
from  8,000  to  135,000.  The  assertion  of  a letter  of  an  “American  Farmer” 
was  almost  literally  true  when  he  wrote  : “We  are  all  tillers  of  the  earth 
33 


504 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  III. 


from  Nova  Scotia  to  West  Florida.  We  are  a people  of  cultivation,  scat- 
tered over  an  immense  territory ; communicating  with  each  other  by  means 
of  good  roads  and  navigable  rivers ; united  by  the  silken  bands  of  mild 
government ; all  respecting  the  laws,  without  dreading  their  power  because 
they  are  equitable.” 

While  the  English-American  colonists  were  treated  by  the  mother 
country  as  minor  children  or  as  absolute  subjects  to  be  governed,  without 
questionings,  by  her  capricious  will ; and  while  every  measure  of  the 
British  ministry  was  calculated  to  trammel  their  advance  toward  local  self- 
government,  that  lofty  idea  was  working  out  in  America  the  great  problem 
of  republicanism,  whose  demonstration  by  actual  achievements  the  monarchs 
of  Europe  were  dreading.  It  was  an  idea  that  had  spontaneous  birth  in  the 
minds  of  all  the  colonists  when  they  first  felt  the  stimulating  air  of  the 
freedom  of  their  forest  homes;  and  it  grew  into  a mighty  force  in  the 
bosoms  of  individuals  before  any  one  dared  to  openly  promulgate  it.  It 
was  the  early  inspiration  out  of  which  grew  the  democracy  that  finally 
impelled  the  colonists  to  proclaim  themselves  independent  and  to  establish  a 
nation  here. 

The  common  danger,  as  we  have  seen,  caused  a confederation  of  New 
England  colonies  in  1643,  but  the  national  idea  was  lacking,  and  it  was  short- 
lived. A half  a century  later  William  Penn  put  forth  a plan  for  a general 
union  of  all  the  colonies,  for  their  mutual  welfare,  in  which  he  proposed  the 
appointment  of  persons  in  each  colony,  who  should  meet  at  specified  times, 
in  a general  congress  to  mature  plans  for  the  common  good,  whose  presiding 
officer  should  be  a high  commissioner  appointed  by  the  crown,  and  in  time 
of  war  should  command  all  of  the  colonial  forces.  Penn’s  plan  was  com- 
mended by  many  thoughtful  persons,  and  it  was  likened  to  the  Grecian 
Amphictyonic  Council.  After  that,  writers  in  England  and  the  colonies 
publicly  di.scussed  the  topic,  not  with  any  idea  of  the  independence  of  the 
colonists  as  subjects  of  Great  Britain,  but  with  a feeling  that  a national 
union  here  would  redound  to  the  glory  and  happiness  of  Great  Britain  and 
her  American  citizens.  When,  early  in  the  last  century,  public  attention 
was  called  to  the  evident  designs  of  the  French  to  supplant  the  English  in 
America,  Daniel  Coxe,  who  had  been  a prominent  man  in  New  Jersey, 
published  a volume  in  London  (1722),  in  which  he  proposed  that  all  the 
British  colonies  here  should  be  united  by  a national  covenant,  in  a national 
government,  over  which  a supreme  viceroy  or  governor,  appointed  by  the 
crown,  should  preside  in  some  part  of  America,  the  governors  of  the  several 
colonies  to  be  subordinate  to  him  ; and  also  that  there  should  be  a general 
congress  of  deputies  chosen  by  the  several  colonies  to  promote  unity  of 


Chap.  XVI. 


COLONIAL  CONGRESSES. 


505 


action  in  times  of  danger.  Men  of  all  shades  of  political  opinion  made 
similar  suggestions ; and  Dinwiddie,  governor  of  Virginia,  recommended, 
not  only  a union  of  the  colonies  for  mutual  defence,  but  a confederation  of 
the  Indians  then  friendly  toward  the  English,  with  the  tribes  more  in  the 
interior  and  under  the  influence  of  the  French. 

Meanwhile  there  had  been  several  congresses  or  conventions  of  leading 
men  in  the  colonies,  having  for  their  object  the  union  of  the  people  of  the 
several  provinces  for  the  public  good,  or  to  cultivate  the  friendship  of  the 
Indians.  One  of  these  was  held  at  Albany  in  1684,  composed  of  the  officers 
of  the  governments  of  Massachusetts,  New  York,  Maryland  and  Virginia, 
and  sachems  of  the  Five  Nations.  In  1693,  Governor  Fletcher,  of  New 
York,  in  compliance  with  a letter  of  instructions  from  the  king,  called  a 
congress  of  commissioners  from  New  England  and  other  colonies  to  consult 
about  the  quotas  of  men  and  money  which  the  several  provinces  should 
raise  for  common  defence  against  the  French.  The  call  was  so  feebly 
answered  that  nothing  was  done  by  the  few  present.  This  was  followed  the 
next  year  by  a meeting  of  commissioners  at  Albany  with  sachems  of  the 
Iroquois  Confederacy,  the  object  being  to  prevent  the  Five  Nations  from 
making  a peace  with  the  French  in  Canada. 

When  it  was  resolved  to  invade  Canada  with  a land  and  naval  force,  in 
1711,  a convention  was  held  at  New  London,  Connecticut,  to  consult  upon 
the  matter,  at  which  the  governors  of  several  of  the  colonies  appeared  and 
agreed  upon  the  quotas.  The  expedition  that  followed,  under  Colonel 
Nicholson  on  land  and  Sir  Hovenden  Walker  on  the  water,  proved  dis- 
astrous, as  we  have  seen.  In  1722,  a congress  of  colonial  officials  and  Indian 
sachems  was  held  at  Albany  for  the  promotion  of  a friendly  feeling  and  the 
strengthening  of  the  alliance  then  existing  with  the  Iroquois  Confederacy. 
And  in  1744,  a similar  congress,  for  the  same  purpose,  met  at  Lancaster,  in 
Pennsylvania,  whereat  over  two  hundred  and  fifty  representatives  of  the  Six 
(late  Five)  Nations  were  in  attendance. 

The  last  of  these  colonial  congresses,  all  exhibiting  tendencies  toward  a 
national  union,  was  held  at  Albany  in  the  summer  of  1748,  soon  after  news 
had  reached  the  colonies  of  a preliminary  treaty  of  peace  having  been 
signed  by  the  commissioners  of  England  and  France,  The  congress  was 
called  for  a two-fold  purpose.  The  antagonisms  between  the  royal  governors 
and  the  people  were  alarming  to  the  crown  officers  in  America,  and  the 
latter  wished  to  secure  a colonial  revenue  through  British  interference,  and 
not  be  subjected,  in  the  matter,  to  the  will  or  caprice  of  colonial  assemblies. 
Foremost  among  these  crown  officers  who  were  willing  to  abridge  the  rights 
of  the  people,  were  Governor  Clinton,  of  New  York,  and  Governor  Shirley, 


5o6 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  III. 


of  Massachusetts.  They  had  promoted  the  assembling  of  the  congress  with 
a hope  that  that  body  would  favor  their  scheme,  and  they  were  both  there 
with  their  political  friends.  Another  purpose  of  the  meeting  was  the 
strengthening  of  the  bond  of  friendship  between  the  Six  Nations  and  their 
savage  neighbors  on  the  west,  and  the  English.  A vast  concourse  of  bar- 
barians were  there.  The  royal  governors  gained  nothing  for  themselves : 
but  a satisfactory  arrangement  was  made  with  the  Indians.  They  agreed 
that  no  Frenchman  should  abide  within  their  borders;  also,  not  to  send  any 
delegation  to  Canada,  and  to  have  their  warriors  ready  for  the  service  of  the 
English  whenever  they  should  be  called  for. 

A crisis  in  political  affairs  in  the  colonies  was  now  at  hand.  The  royal 
governors  perceived  that  something  must  speedily  be  done  to  curb  the 
democratic  spirit  of  the  people,  or  local  self-government  would  supersede 
royal  authority.  It  Avas  necessary  to  convince  parliament  of  this  truth. 
Only  through  the  Lords  of  Trade  and  Plantations  could  this  be  done.  This 
was  a Board  or  Committee  appointed  by  the  crown  in  1696,  to  whom  was 
entrusted  a general  oversight  of  the  affairs  of  the  American  colonies.  It 
was  originally  composed  of  seven  members  and  a president.  To  them  the 
royal  governors  were  requested  to  give  frequent  and  full  information  of  the 
condition  of  their  respective  governments  concerning  political  and  commer- 
cial affairs,  and  particularly  of  the  proceedings  of  the  assemblies  ; also  of 
the  appropriations  for  the  public  service,  and  how  they  were  expended.  To 
this  Board  the  royal  agents  in  the  colonies  addressed  their  letters.  “ It  was 
the  lion’s  mouth,”  says  Frothingham  in  his  Rise  of  the  Republic  of  the  United 
States,  “ into  which  the  accusations  and  complaints  against  the  colonies 
were  indiscriminately  cast.” 

To  arouse  the  Lords  of  Trade  and  Plantations  to  action,  some  overt  act 
of  disobedience  on  the  part  of  the  colonies  must  be  obtained.  The  bluff 
Admiral  Clinton,  then  governor  of  New  York,  was  chosen  to  bring  on  the 
crisis,  and  that  province  was  to  be  the  theatre  of  the  collision.  The  royal 
governors  were  to  aid  him  by  representations  to  the  Board  of  the  turbulence 
of  the  people  and  their  disloyalty.  Governor  Shirley  took  occasion,  when 
the  people  of  Boston  had  liberated  some  of  their  citizens  from  the  grasp  of 
a British  admiral  who  had  impressed  them  into  the  naval  service,  to  repre- 
sent the  act  as  a rebellious  insurrection.  “ The  chief  cause  of  the  mobbish 
turn  of  a town  inhabited  by  twenty  thousand  inhabitants,”  he  continued, 
“ is  its  constitution,  by  which  the  management  of  it  devolves  on  the  popu- 
lace, assembled  in  their  town  meetings.”  Royalists  in  Pennsylvania  wrote 
words  of  warning,  saying  that  “ the  obstinate,  wrong-headed  Assembly  of 
Quakers”  in  that  colony,  “pretended  not  to  be  accountable  to  his  majesty 


Chap.  XVI. 


CONDUCT  OF  THE  GOVERNOR  OF  NEW  YORK. 


507 


or  his  government,”  and  that  “ they  may,  in  time,  apply  the  public  money  to 
purposes  injurious  to  the  crown  and  the  mother  country.”  “Virginia,” 
wrote  its  governor,  “ formerly  an  orderly  province,  has  nothing  more  at  heart 
than  to  lessen  the  influence  of  the  crown.”  In  a similar  strain  loyalists 
wrote  from  all  the  provinces ; and  the  Earl  of  Halifax,  a young  man  a little 
more  than  thirty  years  of  age,  who  had  been  placed  at  the  head. of  The 
Lords  of  Trade,  was  satisfied  that  royal  authority  in  the  colonies  was  in 
peril,  and  so  informed  the  ministry.  In  a letter  to  Governor  Glen,  of  South 
Carolina,  he  promised  “a very  serious  consideration  on  the  just  prerogatives 
of  the  crown  and  those  defects  of  the  constitution  which  have -spread  them- 
selves over  many  of  the  plantations,  and  are  destructive  to  all  order  and 
government.” 

Governor  Clinton  sought,  and  soon  found  an  occasion  for  a quarrel  with 
the  New  York  Assembly.  He  demanded  of  that  body  an  appropriation  for 
the  support  of  the  government,  for  five  years  next  ensuing,  with  a view  of 
making  himself,  as  governor,  independent  of  the  assembly.  As  he  expected, 
they  refused  their  compliance.  Then  he  warned  them  of  the  danger  of 
incurring  the  displeasure  of  parliament,  and  dissolved  the  assembly.  He  at 
once  wrote  letters  to  the  Lords  of  Trade,  complaining  of  the  rebellious 
tendencies  of  a greater  portion  of  the  assembly,  charging  them  with  claim- 
ing “ all  the  powers  and  privileges  of  parliament ; ” that  they  had  “ set  up 
the  people  as  the  high  court  of  American  appeal ; ” that  they  had  “ virtually 
assumed  all  of  the  public  money  into  their  own  hands,  and  issued  it  without 
warrant  from  the  governor,”  and,  also,  had  assumed  the  right  to  nominate 
all  officers  of  government ; to  reward  all  services  by  granting  the  salaries  an- 
nually, “ not  to  the  office,  but  by  name  to  the  person  in  the  office,”  and  that 
the  “ system  if  not  speedily  remedied,  would  effect  the  dependency  of  the 
colonies  on  the  crown.”  He  besought  the  king  to  “ make  a good  example 
for  all  America,  by  regulating  the  government  of  New  York.”  He  declared 
that  until  that  should  be  done  he  could  not  “ meet  the  assembly  without 
danger  of  exposing  the  king’s  authority,”  and  himself,  “ to  contempt.” 

After  violent  quarrels  with  all  political  factions  in  the  province,  Clinton 
abandoned  the  government  in  disgust,  and  returned  home.  He  was  suc- 
ceeded by  Sir  Danvers  Osborne,  who  came  with  instructions  to  demand  from 
the  assembly  a permanent  revenue  to  be  disbursed  solely  by  himself.  His 
council  assured  him  that  the  assembly  would  refuse  compliance  with  the 
demand.  Foreseeing  much  trouble  ahead,  he  became  despondent.  This 
state  of  mind  was  aggravated  by  grief  because  of  the  recent  death  of  his 
wife,  and  he  hanged  himself  with  his  pocket-handkerchief  to  the  garden 
fence  at  his  lodgings  in  New  York. 


5o8 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  III. 


The  attitude  of  the  New  York  Assembly  was  applauded  by  the  leaders 
of  popular  opinion  in  the  other  colonies ; and  had  measures  for  the  main- 
tenance of  the  royal  prerogative  and  the  supreme  authority  of  parliament 
which  Halifax  proposed  been  pressed  with  vigor  much  longer,  the  revolution 
which  broke  out  about  twenty  years  later  would  doubtless  have  occurred 
then.  . But  more  urgent  considerations  occupied  the  attention  of  the  British 
government  and  the  American  colonies  at  that  time.  Ever  since  the  English 
captured  Louisburg,  in  1745,  and  D’Anville  experienced  his  naval  disasters, 
the  French  had  put  forth  the  most  vigorous  efforts  for  the  extension  and 
strengthening  of  their  dominion  in  America.  They  were  resolved  on  a 
persistent  strife  for  power ; and  their  aggressive  movements  about  the  year 
1753,  aroused  the  British  government  and  the  American  colonial  assemblies 
and  people  to  the  necessity  of  employing  equally  vigorous  measures  for 
opposing  their  common  enemy.  Then  the  colonists  united  among  them- 
selves and  with  the  Home  Government  in  defence  of  British  dominion  in 
America.  Then  began  the  conflict  known  in  America  as  the  French  mid 
Indian  War,  and  in  Europe  as  the  Seven  Years  War,  which  we  will  now 
consider. 


CHAPTER  XVII. 


THE  TREATY  OF  AIX-LA-CHAPELLE — EFFORTS  OF  THE  ENGLISH  TO  MAINTAIN  THEIR  DOMINION 
IN  AMERICA — THE  OHIO  LAND  COMPANY — EVENTS  IN  NOVA  SCOTIA — SUFFERINGS  OF  THE 
FRENCH  INHABITANTS  THERE — ATTEMPTS  TO  ENSLAVE  THE  AMERICANS  RESISTED — MAHEW’S 
PATRIOTIC  SERMONS — MOVEMENTS  OF  THE  FRENCH  ALARM  THE  ENGLISH — THE  OHIO  COUN- 
TRY EXPLORED — TREATY  WITH  THE  INDIAN  TRIBES — HOSTILE  ATTITUDE  OF  THE  FRENCH — 
MAJOR  WASHINGTON’S  EMBASSY  TO  THE  FRENCH  COMMANDER. 

The  famous  treaty  at  Aix-la-Chapelle  in  1748  produced  the  pacifica- 
tion of  Europe,  and  a lull  in  warfare  in  America.  It  seemed  to 
promise  a long  repose  from  war  in  both  hemispheres.  In  that 
ancient  city  of  Rhenish  Prussia,  where  Charlemagne  was  born  and  where  he 
died,  and  where  fifty-five  emperors  have  been  crowned,  the  representatives  of 
Great  Britain,  France,  Holland,  Germany,  Spain  and  Genoa,  signed  a solemn 
treaty  which  ended  a war  begun  in  1740.  That  was  the  consequence  of  the 
ascension  of  the  throne  of  Austria  by  Maria  Theresa,  in  conformity  to  the 
“ Pragmatic  Sanction  ” — ^a  royal  ordinance — of  her  father,  Charles  the  Sixth 
of  Germany,  made  in  1713.  That  treaty  confirmed  six  other  treaties  which 
had  been  made  in  the  space  of  a century ; and  hopeful  men  looked  for  the 
peace  of  the  millennium  almost.  But  that  treaty  was  made  delusive  by  a 
further  struggle  between  France  and  England  for  dominion  in  America. 

The  commissioners  at  Aix-la-Chapelle  had  hardly  reached  their  homes 
before  the  rash  and  inexperienced  Earl  of  Halifax,  at  the  head  of  the  Board 
of  Trade  and  Plantations,  observing  the  steady  encroachments  upon  claimed 
English  domain  in  America,  and  the  menacing  attitude  of  the  French  there, 
resolved  to  employ  measures  for  securing  to  England  the  conquered  territory 
on  the  east  and  the  valley  of  the  Ohio  River  on  the  west : the  latter  by 
settlements  and  colonization.  The  Indians  there  were  friendly  to  the 
English,  and  the  Six  Nations  held  the  passes  from  Canada  to  that  rich  valley. 

Virginians  and  Marylanders  had  proposed  the  planting  of  an  English 
colony  beyond  the  Alleghany  Mountains,  where  there  was  seen  only  here 
and  there  the  solitary  cabin  of  an  English  trader.  Halifax  regarded  that 
region  as  “ the  centre  of  the  British  dominions,”  and  he  persuaded  the  king 
to  instruct  the  governor  of  Virginia  to  grant  to  a company  of  speculators 


510 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book.  111. 


five  hundred  thousand  acres  of  land  on  the  north  side  of  the  Ohio,  between 
the  site  of  the  present  city  of  Pittsburgh  and  the  mouth  of  the  Kanawha 
River.  This  association  was  known  as  The  Ohio  Land  Company.  It  was 
agreed  that  the  company  should  not  be  called  upon  for  quit-rent  for  the 
space  of  ten  years.  It  was  also  agreed  that  within  seven  years  at  least  one 


THE  ACADIANS  FIRST  DISTURBED. 


hundred  families  should  be  settled  on  the  tract,  and  the  company,  at  their 
own  expense,  to  build  a fort  there.  Among  the  proprietors  was  Robert 
Dinwiddie  of  Scotland,  then  surveyor-general  for  the  southern  colonies,  who 
was  soon  afterward  made  lieutenant-governor  of  Virginia. 

At  the  same  time  cruel  measures  were  adopted  by  the  English  govern- 
ment for  securing  dominion  in  Acadia,  or  Nova  Scotia.  The  French  govern- 
ment and  French  priests  proceeded  to  coax  the  simple  French  inhabitants 


Chap.  XVII.  THE  ACADIANS  AND  THEIR  TROUBLES.  511 

to  leave  their  ancient  settlements  on  the  peninsula  and  take  a position  near 
the  frontier,  the  object  being  to  make  them  a barrier  against  the  encroach- 
ments of  the  English.  At  about  the  same  time  Governor  Shirley,  of  Massa- 
chusetts, proposed  to  remove  the  Acadians  altogether,  and  distribute  them 
among  the  English  colonies,  because  they  were  French  Roman  Catholics, 
and  to  settle  their  country  with  Protestants.  This  atrocious  proposal  was 
opposed  by  the  British  ministry  at  first.  A more  humane  policy  was 
adopted.  It  was  to  settle  so  many  Protestants  among  the  Acadians  that 
the  obedience  of  the  French  inhabitants  to  British  authority  would  be 
secured.  Protestants  in  European  countries  were  invited  to  settle  there, 
under  English  protection,  but  responses  were  few.  Finally,  the  British 
government  induced  disbanded  British  soldiers  and  marines  to  accept  lands 
among  the  Acadians  and  to  settle  there.  During  the  year  1749,  about 
fourteen  hundred  of  these,  led  by  Colonel  Cornwallis,  went  among  the 
Acadians  and  planted  the  first  English  town  east  of  the  Penobscot,  in  a 
dreary  place,  and  named  it  Halifax.  This  was  in  compliment  to  the  ener- 
getic earl  who  had  actively  promoted  the  emigration. 

Now  the  serious  troubles  of  the  simple-minded  Acadians  began.  When, 
twenty  years  before,  they  bowed  submissively  to  English  rule,  they  had 
been  promised  freedom  in  religious  matters,  and  exemption  from  bearing 
arms  against  the  French  and  Indians.  This  gave  them  the  name  of  French 
Neutrals.  Now  they  were  ordered  to  take  an  oath  of  allegiance  to  Great 
Britain,  and  the  supremacy  of  the  crown  in  religious  matters,  and  be 
subjected  to  all  the  duties  of  English  subjects.  A thousand  of  the  men 
signed  a petition  humbly  asking  permission  to  sell  their  lands  and  remove 
to  some  place  to  be  provided  by  the  French  government.  Their  hearts  bore 
allegiance  to  France  and  the  ancient  church,  and  they  begged  not  to  be 
compelled  to  take  up  arms  against  the  one,  nor  to  forswear  the  other.  The 
haughty  Cornwallis  said  to  'the  ambassadors  who  brought  the  petition  to 
him:  “Take  the  oath  or  your  property  will  be  confiscated.  It  is  for  me  to 
command  : you  to  obey.” 

More  cruel  were  the  proceedings  against  the  Indians  on  the  peninsula, 
whom  Jesuit  priests  had  incited  to  furious  raids  along  the  New  England 
frontiers.  Cornwallis  summoned  a powerful  Micmac  chief  to  his  presence. 
He  came,  feathered  and  painted,  with  two  young  warriors.  Wrapped  in  his 
blanket,  he  stood  erect  and  defiant  before  the  English  commander.  Corn- 
wallis demanded  the  instant  submission  of  all  the  tribe  to  British  authority. 
The  chief  haughtily  replied  : “ The  land  on  which  you  sleep,  is  ours ; we 
sprung  from  it  as  do  the  trees,  and  the  grass,  and  the  flowers.  It  is  ours 
forever,  and  we  will  not  yield  it  to  any  man ; ” and  turning  on  his  heel  went 


512 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  IJI. 


back  to  his  people.  Under  the  orders  of  his  superiors,  who  declared  that 
the  Indians  on  the  peninsula  were  “ banditti,  ruffians  or  rebels,”  Cornwallis 
offered  ten  guineas  for  every  one  of  them  “ taken  or  killed,”  to  be  paid  on 
producing  the  body  or  scalp  of  the  savage.  Such  were  the  measures 
adopted  by  the  English  at  the  middle  of  the  last  century  for  checking  the 
encroachments  of  the  French  on  the  east  and  west  of  their  domain.  At 
that  time  the  English  in  America  numbered  almost  a million  and  a half ; the 
French  were  not  more  than  a hundred  thousand  strong,  but  they  controlled 
much  of  the  Indian  power  of  the  continent.  France  and  England  were 
heirs  to  an  ancient  quarrel  originating  far  back  in  feudal  ages  and  kept  alive 
by  frequent  collisions. 

While  the  French  power  in  America  seemed  to  be  confined  to  a narrow 
strip  of  territory  along  the  St.  Lawrence  and  the  Lakes,  the  remote  north- 
eastern portion  of  the  continent,  and  in  the  western  wilderness  to  very 
distant  missionary  stations,  very  little  apprehension  of  real  danger  to  their 
colonies  was  felt  by  the  English;  but  when,  after  the  French  lost  Louisburg 
in  1745,  they  built  strong  vessels  at  the  foot  of  Lake  Ontario  ; made  stronger 
their  little  trading  fort  at  Niagara;  built  a cordon  of  fortifications,  more 
than  sixty  in  number,  between  Montreal  and  New  Orleans;  claimed  domin- 
ion over  all  the  territory  drained  by  tributaries  of  the  Mississippi,  with  the 
plausible  plea  that  the  French  were  the  discoverers  of  a greater  portion  of 
that  stream,  and  were  negotiating  treaties  with  the  powerful  Delawares  and 
Shawnoese,  on  the  frontiers  of  Pennsylvania  and  Virginia,  the  English 
perceived  real  and  impending  danger.  The  American  colonists  saw  it  first, 
and  were  alarmed ; hence  the  proposition  to  plant  an  English  settlement 
west  of  the  Alleghanies.  It  was  at  that  moment,  when  there  appeared  the 
plausible  pretext  of  a necessity  for  united  action,  under  a single  head,  against 
the  French,  that  the  British  government  resolved  to  assert  its  supreme 
authority  in  the  colonies.  Governor  Shirley,  a thorough  royalist,  proposed 
the  building  of  frontier  forts,  under  the  direction  of  royal  officers  and 
engineers,  at  the  expense  of  the  colonies,  and  demanding  from  them  the 
levying  of  a tax  sufficient  for  the  purpose.  The  crown  officers  of  New  York 
approved  the  measure.  Shirley  went  to  England  to  perfect  his  schemes, 
and  found  the  government  eager  to  do  anything  to  check  the  democratic 
spirit  in  America  which  was  evidently  aiming  at  legislative  independence,  if 
not  the  setting  up  of  an  independent  sovereignty.  The  English-Americans 
found  themselves  in  the  critical  position  of  being  compelled  to  fight  the 
French  and  Indians  for  the  preservation  of  their  ’domain,  and  to  contend 
with  the  mother  country  for  their  chartered  rights  and  natural  liberties. 
The  French  were  their  political  and  religious  enemies,  and  menaced  them 


Chap.  XVII. 


PATRIOTISM  IN  THE  PULPIT. 


513 


with  open  hostility ; their  British  brethren  were  their  social  foes,  nestling  in 
their  bosoms,  and  seeking  to  conquer  their  noble  and  holy  aspirations  under 
false  pretences.  Yet  the  Americans  were  hopeful  and  firm.  When  the 
Lords  of  Trade  induced  the  parliament  to  attempt  to  assert  its  supremacy 
in  the  colonies,  and  royal  governors,  under  instructions,  demanded  of  the 
colonial  assemblies,  in  haughty  words,  the  money  and  the  rights  of  the 
Americans,  their  demands  were  met  by  a quiet  defiance  in  the  form  of  posi- 
tive refusals  and  energetic  protests  of  an  indignant  people.  These  had, 
many  of  them,  been  driven  from  England  by  persecution;  had  founded 
homes  and  built  up  states  without  England’s  aid,  and  had  spent  blood  and 
treasure  freely  for  England’s  honor  and  glory  without  even  the  poor  return 
of  thanks ; therefore  this  insidious  attempt  to  enslave  them  gave  vehemence 
to  their  determination  to  assert  their  right  to  local  self-government  at  all 
hazards.  Their  bold  attitude  at  this  time  made  the  imperial  government 
pause,  and  reserve  its  wrath  for  a more  convenient  season. 

The  words  of  young  Mahew  went  forth  from  his  pulpit  in  Boston,  at  that 
time,  with  the  seeming  unction  and  authority  of  the  ancient  prophets, 
“Thus  saith  the  Lord” — when,  with  fervid  eloquence,  he  denounced  the 
unholy  alliance  of  church  and  state  for  stamping  out  the  freedom  of  Ameri- 
cans. It  was  then  no  secret  that  the  English  hierarchy  were  conspiring  with 
the  crown  for  the  e.stablishment  of  an  episcopacy  in  America,  and  making 
the  liturgy  of  the  Church  of  England  the  state  form  of  public  worship.  It 
was  a part  of  the  plan  for  enslaving  the  Americans.  Whitefield  had  sounded 
the  alarm-bell  in  New  England,  and  Mahew  was  among  the  first  to  openly 
avow  the  public  dissatisfaction.  He  vehemently  reproved  the  “ impious 
bargain  between  the  sceptre  and  the  surplice.”  “ Resist  the  small  begin- 
nings of  civil  tyranny,”  he  said,  “ lest  it  should  swell  to  a torrent  and  deluge 
empires.”  .“The  divine  right  of  kings,  and  non-resistance,”  he  said  in  a 
sermon  in  1750,  “are  as  fabulous  and  chimerical  as  the  most  absurd  reveries 
of  ancient  or  modern  visionaries.  ...  If  those  who  bear  the  title  of 
civil  rulers  do  not  perform  the  duty  of  civil  rulers — if  they  injure  and 
oppress — they  have  not  the  least  pretence  to  be  honored  or  obeyed.  If  the 
common  safety  or  utility  would  not  be  promoted  by  submission  to  the 
government,  there  is  no  motive  for  submission.”  And  he  declared  that 
disobedience,  under  such  circumstance,  became  “ lawful  and  glorious.”  The 
sentiment  of  the  colonists  was  responsive  ; and  the  temper  manifested  by  the 
people  then  was  the  herald  of  that  flame  of  feeling  which,  a quarter  of  a 
century  later,  kindled  the  old  war  for  independence.  It  aroused  the  ani- 
mosity of  the  crown  and  its  creatures  against  the  Americans,  and  history 
was  repeated.  Demosthenes  said  to  the  Thebans  two  thousand  years  before  : 


514 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  111. 


“ We  are  well  aware  of  that  inextinguishable  hatred  which  kings  and  the 
slaves  of  kings  have  ever  felt  towards  nations  which  have  plumed  themselves 
on  being  free.” 

A crisis  was  now  at  hand.  The  disputes  between  the  French  and 
English  in  America  ripened  into  action. 

The  French  were  offended  by  the  planting  of  Halifax,  in  Nova  Scotia; 
and  a partisan  named  La  Come,  professing  to  act  under  the  orders  of 
Joncaire,  chief  captain  in  Canada,  took  possession  of  the  isthmus  that  con- 
nects the  peninsula  with  the  main,  with  a large  force  of  French  and  Indians. 
He  summoned  the  Acadians  to  renounce  their  allegiance  to  the  English  and 
take  refuge  with  the  French  ; and  that  poor  people  were  at  their  wits’  end. 
He  held  a village  (now  Fort  Lawrence),  and  compelled  the  inhabitants  to 
take  an  oath  of  allegiance  to  France. 

When  Cornwallis  heard  of  this  he  called  upon  Massachusetts  to  help  in 
dislodging  the  intruders.  The  Assembly  replied : “ By  the  constitution  of 
this  province  we  must  first  be  convinced  of  the  necessity  of  raising  supplies.” 
So  they  politely  refused,  and  Cornwallis  was  compelled  to  rely  upon  the 
slender  means  at  his  command.  With  four  hundred  soldiers  he  appeared  in 
transports  before  the  town.  The  alarmed  Jesuit  priest  set  fire  to  the  church, 
and  compelled  the  bewildered  inhabitants  to  lay  their  houses  in  ashes  and 
flee  across  the  river.  The  French  were  too  strong  for  the  English,  and  the 
latter  withdrew.  A second  expedition,  a few  months  later,  was  successful. 
Fort  Beau  Sejour,  which  the  French  had  built  opposite  the  desolated  town, 
was  captured,  with  loss  of  life.  This  was  the  first  blood  they  had  shed  in 
war  since  the  treaty  at  Aix-la-Chapelle.  It  was  now  August,  1750. 

This  event  was  followed  by  the  capture  of  French  vessels  by  an  English 
man-of-war  off  Cape  Sable.  The  French  government,  exasperated  by  these 
insults  to  their  flag,  broke  off  negotiations  for  a peaceful  settlement  of 
boundaries  in  America,  and  resolved  to  appeal  to  the  arbitrament  of  the 
sword.  At  near  the  head  of  the  valley  of  the  Ohio  was  the  theatre  of  the 
first  passage  at  arms. 

The  Ohio  Land  Company  took  measures  for  defining  and  occupying  their 
domain.  Thomas  Lee,  Augustine  and  Lawrence  Washington,  and  other 
leading  Virginia  members  of  the  Company,  ordered  goods  to  be  sent  from 
London  suitable  for  the  Indian  trade;  and  as  no  attempt  at  settlement  could 
be  safely  made  without  some  previous  arrangement  with  the  Indians,  the 
Company  petitioned  the  Virginia  government  to  invite  the  savages  to  a 
ti;eaty  council.  As  a preliminary  movement,  the  Company  took  measures 
to  obtain  information  concerning  the  best  lands  beyond  the  mountains. 
English  traders  with  the  Indians  had  traversed  the  passes  through  them. 


Chap.  XVII. 


EXPLORATION  OF  THE  OHIO  VALLEY. 


515 


and  spoke  of  the  beauty  and  fertility  of  the  country  beyond,  but  the  Com- 
pany wished  more  definite  knowledge.  In  the  autumn  of  1750,  Christopher 
Gist,  from  the  borders  of  the  Yadkin,  was  in  Virginia.  He  was  a bold  and 
skillful  woodsman,  and  acquainted  with  Indian  life  ; and  he  was  employed 
to  cross  the  great  hills  and  spy  out  the  land.  He  was  instructed  to  observe 
the  best  mountain  passes;  to  explore  the  country  as  far  down  as  the  Falls 
of  the  Ohio  (Louisville) ; examine  the  most  useful  streams  and  count  their 
falls;  search  out  the  fertile  level  lands;  ascertain  the  strength  of  the  Indian 
tribes,  and  make  as  accurate  a chart  of  the  region  as  his  observations  would 
allow. 


GIST  EXPLORING  THE  WILDERNESS. 


Gist  left  Alexandria  on  horseback  at  the  close  of  October ; crossed  the 
Blue  Ridge  and  the  Shenandoah  Valley;  waded  through  snow-drifts  in  the 
Alleghany  Mountains;  swam  his  horse  across  the  Ohio  River,  and  made  his 
way  through  a rich  narrow  valley  to  Logstown,  where  it  was  proposed  to 
hold  the  Indian  council.  He  presented  himself  as  an  ambassador  from  the 
British  sovereign.  As  such  he  was  respected  by  the  chief,  but  the  savages 
received  him  with  coolness.  “You  are  come  to  settle  the  Indians’ land,” 
said  the  chief;  “ you  never  shall  go  home  safe.”  Undaunted  by  this  covert 
threat.  Gist  pressed  forward  to  the  Muskingum,  stopping  at  a village  of 
Ottawas,  who  were  friends  of  the  French.  The  Wyandots  at  Muskingum 
received  him  cordially,  and  there  he  found  George  Croghan,  an  emissary  of 
the  Pennsylvanians  who  were  jealous  of  the  Ohio  Company,  regarding  them 
as  rivals  seeking  a monopoly  of  the  trade  with  the  Indians  of  the  northwest. 


5i6 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  III. 


Gist  crossed  the  Muskingum  as  he  had  crossed  the  Ohio — the  “ beautiful 
river,”  in  the  language  of  the  Iroquois — and  pushing  on  with  Croghan  and 
other  traders  through  the  stately  forests  and  across  savannahs  then  white 
with  snow,  he  reached  the  Scioto  River  a few  miles  from  its  mouth.  There 
dwelt  some  Delawares ; and  a short  distance  below  the  Scioto  there  were 
Shawnoese  on  both  sides  of  the  Ohio.  Both  professed  friendship  for  the 
English,  and  a willingness  to  attend  a general  council  at  Logstown. 

Northward  lay  the  beautiful  land  of  the  Miamis,  a confederacy  really 
more  powerful  than  that  of  the  Iroquois,  with  whom  they  were  friendly. 
Thither  the  representatives  of  Virginia  and  Pennsylvania  went.  They  were 
kindly  received.  Strings  of  wampum  were  exchanged  as  tokens  of  friend- 
ship. A treaty  of  peace  and  alliance  was  concluded  with  the  confederacy, 
and  arrangements  were  made  for  all  the  friendly  tribes  to  meet  at  Logstown 
in  grand  council. 

Just  as  the  treaty  was  signed,  four  Ottawas  came  with  presents  from  the 
French.  The  Indian  sovereign,  who  presided  at  the  council,  immediately 
set  up  the  flags  of  France  and  England  side  by  side.  Addressing  the 
Ottawas,  he  said:  “The  path  of  the  French  is  bloody,  and  was  made  so  by 
them.  We  have  made  a road  plain  for  our  brothers,  the  English,  and  your 
fathers  have  made  it  foul  and  crooked,  and  have  made  some  of  our  brethren 
prisoners.  This  we  look  upon  as  an  injury  done  to  us.”  Then  suddenly 
turning  his  back  upon  the  Ottawas,  he  left  the  council.  The  F'rench  flag 
was  removed,  and  the  emissaries  who  bore  it  were  ordered  to  return  to  their 
Gallic  friends  at  Sandusky. 

Gist  viewed  the  magnificent  country  he  was  in  with  deepest  admiration, 
and  bidding  his  English  companions  and  the  dusky  barbarians  farewell,  he 
went  down  the  valley  of  the  Little  Miami  to  the  Ohio  and  along  that  stream 
almost  to  the  Falls.  Then  he  penetrated  the  famous  blue-grass  region  of 
Kentucky,  with  its  marvellous  forests ; climbed  over  the  mountains  to  the 
headwaters  of  the  Yadkin  and  the  Roanoke,  and  at  the  end  of  a journey  of 
seven  months,  he  stood  before  Lawrence  Washington,  at  Mount  Vernon, 
then  chief  director  of  the  Ohio  Company,  with  a vast  amount  of  valuable 
information. 

The  promised  council  of  the  western  tribes  was  not  held  until  June, 
1752.  Gist  was  there  as  the  agent  of  the  Ohio  Company,  and  Colonel  Fry 
and  two  other  commissioners  represented  Virginia.  Friendly  relations  with 
the  Western  Indians  were  established  by  the  treaty,  but  the  barbarian  chiefs 
steadily  refused  to  recognize  any  English  title  to  lands  west  of  the  Alle- 
ghany mountains.  On  that  point  they  had  been  equally  firm  with  the 
French,  and  resisted  the  importunities  and  claims  of  both.  A shrewd 


Chap.  XVII. 


THE  VIRGINIANS  AND  THE  FRENCH. 


517 


Delaware  chief  said  to  Gist : “The  French  claim  all  the  land  on  one  side  of 
the  river,  and  the  English  claim  all  the  land  on  the  other  side  of  the  river  ; 
where  is  the  Indians’  land  ? ” It  was  a question  difficult  to  answer.  Gist 
did  not  attempt  it,  but  said:  “Indians  and  white  men  are  subjects  of  the 
British  king,  and  all  have  an  equal  privilege  of  taking  up  and  possessing  the 
land,  in  conformity  with  the  conditions  prescribed  by  the  sovereign.” 

The  Ohio  Company  sent  out  surveyors  to  explore  the  country,  make 
definite  boundaries  and  prepare  for  settlements.  English  traders  penetrated 
the  Ohio  country  to  the  domain  of  the  Miamis  and  beyond,  and  the  Indians 
found  profit  by  their  friendly  relations  with  them.  The  jealousy  of  the 
French  was  aroused.  They  regarded  the  English  as  intruders.  They  saw 
with  alarm  the  waning  French  influence  among  the  tribes  of  the  upper  Ohio 
Valley,  and  presaged  the  ultimate  destruction  of  their  fortified  line  of  com- 
munication between  Canada  and  the  Gulf  of  Mexico.  Finally,  in  1753,  they 
seized  and  imprisoned  some  of  the  surveyors  and  traders ; and  about  twelve 
hundred  French  soldiers  were-  employed  to  erect  forts  in  the  wilderness 
between  the  upper  waters  of  the  Alleghany  River  and  Lake  Erie.  One  of 
these  was  erected  at  Presq’-isle,  now  Erie,  on  the  southern  shore  of  the  lake 
of  that  name.  Another  was  reared  at  Le  Boeuf,  on  French  Creek,  now 
Waterford;  and  a third  was  constructed  at  the  junction  of  French  Creek 
and  the  Alleghany  River,  on  the  site  of  the  village  of  Franklin. 

The  Ohio  Company  complained  of  these  hostile  demonstrations.  Their 
lands  lay  within  the  chartered  limits  of  Virginia,  and  the  authorities  of  that 
colony  felt  it  their  duty  to  interfere  in  defence  of  the  rights  of  the  Com- 
pany. Already  the  governors  of  Virginia  and  Pennsylvania  had  received 
instructions  from  England  to  repel  the  French  by  force  of  arms,  if  necessary. 
Robert  Dinwiddie,  one  of  the  Company,  and  now  governor  of  Virginia, 
determined  to  first  send  a letter  of  remonstrance  to  M.  de  St.  Pierre,  the 
French  commander.  Now,  George  Washington,  who  was  destined  to 
occupy  a conspicuous  place  in  the  history  of  our  country  and  of  the  world, 
first  appeared  on  the  theatre  of  public  action,  at  the  very  opening  of  that 
illustrious  drama  whose  closing  scene  was  the  founding  of  a mighty  nation. 

Young  Washington  was  then  a little  more  than  twenty-one  years  of  age. 
He  was  of  an  excellent  and  honorable  family,  whose  roots  lay  far  back  in 
English  history.  He  was  a sort  of  foster-son  of  old  Lord  Fairfax;  and  as  a 
public  surveyor  and  skillful  hunter,  had  traversed  the  forests  of  Virginia  far 
and  near,  in  the  direction  of  the  Ohio.  At  the  age  of  nineteen  years  he  had 
been  commissioned  a major  of  militia,  charged  with  defending  the  colony 
against  incursions  of  the  Indians,  and  had  entered  upon  the  duties  of  his  office 
with  alacrity  and  zeal.  Fraternal  affection  had  called  him  from  them  to 


5i8 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  JIl. 


attend  upon  a dying  brother,  but  he  had  evinced,  during  his  short  service, 
such  an  aptitude  for  military  pursuits,  and  such  faithfulness  in  performance, 
that  he  was  marked  for  promotion. 

Dinwiddie  sent  for  Major  Washington.  He  appeared  promptly  at  the 
room  of  the  governor  (more  exactly  the  lieutenant-governor)  in  the  old  state- 
house  at  Williamsburg,  late  in  October,  1753.  Dinwiddie  was  a bald-headed 
Scotchman,  sixty-three  years  of  age,  with  thin  sandy  hair,  stout  built,  and 
so  extremely  nervous  that  his  writing  bore  the  marks  of  a trembling  hand. 
Young  Washington  was  full  six  feet  in  height,  strongly  built,  with  a florid 
complexion  and  every  indication  of  high  health  and  physical  strength.  The 
governor  then  first  revealed  to  the  major  the  object  of  his  summons,  and 
received  his  cheerful  agreement  to  perform  whatever  duty  might  be  required 
of  him.  The  governor  gave  him  a commission  and  instructions  to  proceed 
to  the  quarters  of  the  French  commander,  and  present  to  him  in  person  a 
letter  from  Dinwiddie,  in  which  the  governor  inquired  by  what  authority 
French  troops  had  presumed  to  intrude  upon  the  territory  of  the  British 
monarch,  and  what  were  his  designs.  It  was  a mission  of  great  delicacy, 
and  was  accompanied  by  not  a little  peril.  Discretion,  ability,  courage, 
physical  endurance,  experience  in  wood-craft  and  a knowledge  of  Indian 
manners,  were  requisite.  Believing  young  Washington  to  be  possessed  of 
all  of  these,  in  an  eminent  degree,  the  governor  chose  him  to  be  his  ambas- 
sador, out  of  hundreds  of  the  more  pretentious  aristocracy  of  Virginia.  The 
result  was  creditable  alike  to  the  character  of  Major  Washington  and  the 
sagacity  of  Governor  Dinwiddie. 

Washington  was  directed  to  proceed  to  Logstown  (on  the  right  bank  of 
the  Ohio,  about  fourteen  miles  below  the  site  of  Pittsburgh) ; convene  influ- 
ential Indian  chiefs  there;  tell  them  the  object  of  his  visit,  and  request  them 
to  furnish  him  a competent  escort  as  a safeguard  to  the  headquarters  of  the 
French  commander.  There  he  was  to  demand  an  answer  to  Dinwiddie’s 
letter  in  the  name  of  his  king ; to  observe,  with  caution,  the  number  of 
troops  that  had  crossed  the  lake;  perceive  the  strength  and  number  of  their 
forts,  and  their  distance  from  each  other,  and  gain  all  information  possible 
concerning  the  French  on  the  English  frontier.  With  these  instructions 
Washington  left  Williamsburg,  the  Virginia  capital,  on  the  thirty-first  of 
October,  and  was  joined  by  John  Davidson  as  Indian  interpreter,  and  Jacob 
Van  Braam,'a  Hollander  by  birth,  and  acquainted  with  the  French  language, 
to  assist  him  in  his  intercourse  with  the  people  he  was  going  to  see.  On  his 
way  he  was  joined  by  Mr.  Gist,  who  acted  as  guide.  With  these,  and  four 
other  men  (two  of  them  Indian  traders),  with  horses,  tents  and  baggage, 
they  left  the  borders  of  civilization  at  the  mouth  of  Will’s  Creek  (now 


MAJOR  WASHINGTON  ON  HIS  MISSION  TO  THE  FRENCH 


< • 


^ V jujMfi  -i* 

^,V 

■V;>*4v-Jl 

'^-4*  ^ «'  4 


’.  ■’ll  ' ''ty  ^ 

/ijf  ^ \ > ■ . 


X S.  k - 

Jl' .»  • ' 'I 


■ i 


:U 


. . . . • vC  - 


.u  • * y.v,--v 

^.•i Jr. 


; ^ • T'  v :‘.'-'*ht 


/a-  ■*-  •*' 

iW  " >i^  ‘ , J 


,.."X'A'-.  ■ ••’'^^-'J.4^’•  vf-( 

4 It'  ;-S3.V"  >'i  . ■'  -■'=A‘'™  .. 

>;■«;  >.«C' I^jT  .*:-  ^ 'V. • .• 

#r  > ' V • *-  ■ '■  * 4 .'' 


iiU 

• '»  ‘ . V 


.,M.*V.k  .- .'v.  ‘ ^ f , ■*’  / ■•.  ■ ■’.V.ilK  . -^  vK  M.'  ',  I 


Chap.  XVII. 


MAJOR  WASHINGTON’S  MISSION. 


519 


Cumberland,  Maryland),  and  made  their  way  over  the  Alleghany  Mountains, 
then  covered  with  snow.  They  endured  every  hardship  incident  to  a dreary 
wilderness  and  the  rigors  of  winter.  The  streams  in  the  valleys  were  full  to 
their  brims.  Over  the  large  ones  they  passed  upon  frail  and  rudely  con- 
structed rafts,  wading  and  swimming  their  horses  through  the  floods  of  the 
smaller  streams.  Late  in  November  they  reached  the  forks  of  the  Ohio,  on 
the  site  of  Pittsburgh,  where  they  rested  a few  days,  and  then  proceeded  to 
Logstown,  accompanied  by  an  influential  sachem  of  the  Delawares. 

The  headquarters  of  M.  de  St.  Pierre  was  one  hundred  and  twenty  miles 
from  Logstown.  A bold  and  patriotic  chief  named  Half-King,  who,  when 
the  P’rench  came  with  arms  and  built  forts  in  his  country,  had  vehemently 
protested  against  the  invasion  of  the  rights  of  the  Indians,  and  had  been 
treated  with  disdain,  volunteered,  with  two  other  chiefs  and  a skillful  hunter, 
to  escort  the  English  company  of  eight  to  the  headquarters  of  the  French. 
In  the  simplicity  of  his  heart  he  thought  the  English  were  only  seeking  to 
establish  a trade  with  the  tribes  for  mutual  benefit.  He  and  his  people  soon 
found  that  the  French  and  English  were  equally  governed  by  the  ethics  of 
the  mailed  hand — “ Might  makes  Right,”  and  came  to  deprive  them  of 
their  domain  and  liberty. 

After  braving  perils  and  hardships,  the  little  company  found  themselves, 
early  in  December,  at  Fort  Venango  (now  Franklin),  the  French  outpost 
commanded  by  M.  Joncaire.  He  received  the  English  with  civility,  but 
tried  to  detach  and  detain  the  Indians.  He  remembered  the  patriotic 
speech  of  Half-King  at  a previous  meeting,  when  the  chief  said : “ The 
Great-King  above  allowed  the  land  to  be  a place  of  residence  for  us,  so  I 
desire  you  to  withdraw,  as  I have  done  our  brothers,  the  English ; for  I will 
keep  you  at  arm’s  length.  I lay  this  down  as  a trial  for  both,  to  see  which 
will  have  the  greatest  regard  to  it  and  make  equal  sharers  with  us.”  Joncaire 
hoped  to  gain  his  confidence  by  shaking  his  faith  in  the  English,  but  did  not 
succeed. 

Further  up  the  French  Creek,  Washington  found  St.  Pierre,  at  Fort  Le 
Boeuf.  Here  was  the  end  of  the  Virginia  ambassador’s  journey  of  forty-one 
days.  The  French  commandant  received  him  and  his  companions  with 
great  politeness.  He  was  an  elderly  and  courtly  knight  of  St.  Louis  who, 
in  his  early  years,  had  served  in  the  army  of  Louis  the  Great,  and  had 
escaped  the  corruptions  of  the  licentious  court  of  his  successor.  He  received 
the  governor’s  letter  with  thanks ; entertained  the  bearer  and  his  friends 
four  days,  and  then  delivered  into  the  hands  of  Major  Washington  a sealed 
letter  in  reply  to  Dinwiddle’s.  With  this  letter  and  much  useful  informa- 
tion respecting  the  forts  and  forces  of  the  French,  gathered  by  himself  and 
34 


520 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  III. 


his  associates,  Washington  returned  to  Williamsburgh  at  the  middle  of 
January. 

The  return  journey  was  more  perilous  and  fatiguing  than  the  first.  A 
greater  portion  of  it  v/as  performed  by  Washington  and  Gist  alone  and  on 
foot.  At  one  time  they  were  fired  at  by  Indians  supposed  to  have  been 
incited  to  the  deed  by  Joncaire.  On  another  occasion,  after  working  a 
whole  day  in  constructing  a raft,  they  attempted  to  cross  the  swift  and 
swollen  current  of  the  Alleghany  River  upon  it.  The  stream  was  filled  with 


WASHINGTON  AND  GIST  AMONG  THE  ICE, 


floating  ice.  They  embarked  at  twilight,  each  with  a pack  on  his  back  and 
gun  strapped  to  it.  They  soon  found  themselves  buffeting  great  perils. 
Washington,  with  a setting  pole,  was  trying  to  hold  the  frail  structure  that 
the  ice  might  pass  by,  when  he  was  jerked  off  into  water  ten  feet  deep, 
and  saved  himself  from  drowning  by  catching  hold  of  a raft-log.  The  raft 
was  crushed,  and  the  travelers,  thoroughly  drenched,  were  cast  upon  a desert 


Chap.  XVII. 


A PERILOUS  JOURNEY. 


521 


island,  where  they  lay  upon  the  snow  all  night,  hungry  and  half-frozen.  Mr. 
Gist  had  all  of  his  fingers  and  some  of  his  toes  frozen.  Fortunately  the  ice 
was  so  thick  over  the  channel  in  the  morning  that  they  crossed  to  the 
main,  and  toward  evening,  suffering  with  cold,  they  reached  the  cabin  of  a 
Scotch  settler,  near  the  spot  where,  a year  and  a half  afterward,  Braddock 
fought  the  French  and  Indians  in  the  battle  of  the  Monongahela.  The 
island  on  which  the  travelers  were  wrecked  is  directly  opposite  the  United 
States  Arsenal,  at  Lawrenceville,  Pennsylvania,  and  is  known  as  Washing- 
ton’s Island. 

After  this  adventure.  Major  Washington  and  his  companion  rested  two 
or  three  days  for  their  own  refreshment  and  to  procure  horses.  During  that 
time  the  major  paid  a complimentary  visit  to  the  Indian  Queen  Aliquippa, 
who  resided  at  the  confluence  of  the  Monongahela  and  Youghiogany  rivers, 
in  the  southeastern  part  of  Alleghany  county.  She  had  complained  of  his 
neglect  in  not  calling  upon  her  when  on  his  outward  journey.  Young  Wash- 
ington explained  the  circumstances  that  prevented  him,  and  with  an  apology 
he  gave  her  a coat  and  a bottle  of  rum.  The  latter,  Washington  wrote, 
“ was  thought  the  much  better  present  of  the  two,”  and  harmony  of  feeling 
was  restored.  Aliquippa,  who  was  a woman  of  great  energy,  and  had  per- 
formed some  brave  deeds,  was  held  in  respect  amounting  almost  to  reverence 
by  the  Indians  in  Western  Pennsylvania. 


CHAPTER  XVIII. 


REPLY  TO  DINWIDDIE’S  LETTER — VIRGINIA  PREPARES  FOR  WAR — A FORT  COMMENCED  ON  THE 
SITE  OF  PITTSBURGH — THE  FRENCH  SEIZE  IT  AND  NAME  IT  FORT  DU  QUESNE — WASHINGTON 
LEADS  TROOPS  TO  RECOVER  IT — ATTACKS  AND  DEFEATS  SOME  FRENCH  TROOPS — COMPELLED 
TO  SURRENDER  TO  THE  FRENCH  AFTERWARD — COLONIAL  CONVENTION  AT  ALBANY— PLAN  OF 
UNION  ADOPTED — IT  IS  REJECTED  BY  THE  BRITISH  MINISTRY  AND  COLONIAL  ASSEMBLIES — 
AMERICAN  AFFAIRS  IN  ENGLAND — A MAD  MILITARY  SCHEME  ABANDONED — WASHINGTON 
LEAVES  THE  MILITARY  SERVICE  IN  DISGUST — BRADDOCK  SENT  TO  AMERICA  WITH  TROOPS — 
PLAN  OF  THE  CAMPAIGN  FOR  1755  ARRANGED. 

ST.  PIERRE’S  letter  in  reply  to  Governor  Dinw'iddie’s  caused  imme- 
diate preparations  for  war.  It  was  soldierly  in  tone  and  courteous 
in  expression.  He  said  it  did  not  become  him  as  a soldier  to  discuss 
civil  matters ; that  Dinwiddle’s  letter  should  have  been  sent  to  the  Marquis 
Du  Quesne,  then  governor  of  Canada,  by  whose  orders  he  acted  and  whose 
instructions  he  should  carefully  obey  ; and  that  the  summons  of  the  governor 
of  Virginia  to  the  French  to  retire  from  the  country  immediately  could  not 
be  complied  with. 

Dinwiddle  laid  this  letter  before  his  council.  The  burgesses  had  shown 
themselves  indifferent  to  the  alleged  dangers  from  the  P'rench;  and  the 
chief  magistrate  and  his  advisers  determined  not  to  wait  for  the  assembling 
of  the  legislature.  Under  the  general  instructions  from  the  king,  they 
authorized  the  enlistment  of  two  hundred  men  to  march  to  the  Ohio  River 
and  build  two  forts  there  before  the  French  could  descend  that  stream  or  its 
tributaries  in  the  spring.  Major  Washington  was  commissioned  a lieu- 
tenant-colonel, and  placed  in  chief  command  of  the  troops  to  be  raised  ; and 
the  journal  of  his  mission  to  the  French  commander  was  published  to  arouse 
the  people  to  action.  Washington  made  his  headquarters  for  recruiting  at 
Alexandria,  and  authorized  Captain  Trent  to  enlist  rnen  among  the  traders 
and  frontier  settlers. 

Governor  Dinwiddle  now  convened  the  legislature,  and  sent  an  appeal  to 
the  other  colonies  for  help  in  the  work  so  gallantly  begun  by  Virginia.  All 
hesitated  excepting  North  Carolina,  whose  Assembly  immediately  voted 
men  and  money  for  the  purpose.  The  royal  governors  and  colonial  assem- 
blies were  then  wrangling  fiercely  about  the  supremacy  of  parliament  and 


Chap.  XVIII. 


EXPEDITION  AGAINST  THE  FRENCH. 


523 


the  rights  of  the  Americans.  The  former  insisted  upon  the  exclusive  right 
of  parliament  to  fix  quotas,  direct  taxation  and  disburse  moneys  through  the 
agents  of  the  crown  in  the  colonies  ; the  latter  insisted  upon  their  right  to 
do  these  things  themselves  in  their  own  way.  Universal  jealousy  produced 
perilous  procrastination.  The  dan’ger  was  imminent.  The  warm  spring  days 
were  approaching,  when  the  snows  and  ice  would  disappear,  and  the  French 
might  be  seen  upon  the  waters  of  the  “ Beautiful  River.” 

After  much  debate,  the  Virginia  House  of  Burgesses,  who,  as  Dinwiddle 
complained,  were  “ in  a republican  way  of  thinking,”  voted  men  and  money. 
They  authorized  the  raising  of  a regiment  of  six  companies,  and  appointed 
Joshua  Fry,  an  English-born  gentleman,  colonel,  with  young  Washington  as 
his  lieutenant.  To  stimulate  enlistments,  Dinwiddie  was  authorized  to  offer 
as  a bounty  two  hundred  thousand  acres  of  land  on  the  Ohio,  to  be  divided 
among  the  soldiers  who  should  engage  in  the  expedition. 

Alexandria  was  made  the  place  of  military  rendezvous.  On  the  recom- 
mendation of  Washington,  the  Forks  of  the  Ohio — the  site  of  the  city  of 
Pittsburgh — was  chosen  the  place  on  which  to  build  the  first  fort ; and 
Captain  Trent  was  instructed  to  employ  his  recruits  in  its  construction.  As 
the  spring  was  passing  away,  Washington,  who  was  yet  at  Alexandria,  was 
ordered  to  join  Trent  with  the  advance  of  the  military  force  and  assist  in  the 
speedy  completion  of  the  fort.  He  was  instructed  to  “ drive  away,  kill  and 
destroy,  or  seize  as  prisoners  all  persons  not  the  subjects  of  the  king  of 
Great  Britain,  who  should  attempt  to  take  possession  of  the  lands  on  the 
Ohio  or  any  of  its  tributaries.” 

Early  in  April,  Lieutenant-Colonel  Washington  left  Alexandria  with  a 
small  force,  and  reached  Will’s  Creek  (now  Cumberland)  on  the  20th.  On 
the  way  he  was  met  by  a swift  runner  sent  by  the  friendly  Half-King  on  the 
Monongahela,  bearing  a wampum-belt  and  this  message  from  the  chief: 
“ Come  to  our  assistance  as  soon  as  you  can ; come  soon  or  we  are  lost, 
and  shall  never  meet  again.  I speak  it  in  the  grief  of  my  heart.”  The 
French  had  been  seen  embarking  on  the  Alleghany  at  Venango,  and  news 
of  the  movement  had  spread  alarm  among  the  barbarians  friendly  to  the 
English.  After  giving  the  heated  Indian  runner  food  and  a flask  of  rum, 
Washington  sent  him  back  with  a belt  and  the  words:  “Your  friend  and 
brother  is  coming ; be  strong  and  patient.” 

As  he  approached  Will’s  Creek,  Washington  was  met  by  another  runner, 
who  said  the  French  were  at  the  Forks;  and  the  next  day  an  ensign  from 
Trent’s  company  came  with  the  startling  news  that  the  French,  a thousand 
strong,  with  eighteen  cannon,  sixty  bateaux  and  three  hundred  canoes,  had 
come  down  the  Alleghany,  under  the  command  of  Captain  Contrecoeur,  and 


524 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  III. 


taken  possession  of  the  unfinished  fort.  These  numbers  were  exaggerations, 
but  the  fact  remained  that  the  F"rench  were  occupying  the  important  position 
at  the  Forks  of  the  Ohio.  They  immediately  finished  the  fort  on  a stronger 
plan,  and  named  it  Du  Quesne  in  honor  of  the  governor  of  Canada. 

Colonel  Fry  had  not  yet  joined  the  advance.  The  young  lieutenant- 
colonel  assumed  the  responsibility  of  pressing  forward  with  his  handful  of 


PASSING  OVER  THE  ALLEGHANY  MOUNTAINS. 


raw  recruits — not  more  than  one  hundred  and  fifty  in  number — and  a few 
pieces  of  light  artillery.  Leaving  the  borders  of  civilization  on  a cool  morn- 
ing in  April,  these  pioneers  penetrated  the  wilderness  in  the  direction  of  the 
Ohio.  Without  shelter  from  cold  and  rain  ; in  scanty  clothing  and  with  a 
small  supply  of  provisions,  they  dragged  the  cannon  over  the  great  wooded 
hills;  felled  trees;  bridged  streams;  made  causeways  over  marshes,  and 


Chap.  XVIII. 


A SHARP  CONFLICT. 


525 


removed  rocks,  to  make  the  march  of  the  main  army  easier ; and  late  in  May 
they  stood  on  the  banks  of  the  Youghiogany,  within  forty  miles  of  Fort  Du 
Quesne.  There  Washington  received  a message  from  Half-King,  saying: 
“Be  on  your  guard.  The  French  are  near,  and  intend  to  strike  the  first 
English  whom  they  shall  see.”  On  the  same  day  this  report  was  confirmed. 
Ignorant  of  the  number  of  the  French,  Washington  fell  back  to  a fertile 
plain  which  he  had  crossed,  called  the  Great  Meadows,  and  there  built  a 
stockade  and  named  it  Fort  Necessity.  It  was  near  the  modern  national 
road  between  Cumberland  and  Wheeling,  in  the  southea.stern  part  of  Fayette 
county,  Pennsylvania.  There  Mr.  Gist,  who  had  a settlement  near,  came  to 
him  and  reported  that  he  had  discovered  the  tracks  of  the  French  within 
five  miles  of  the  Great  Meadows. 

At  about  nine  o’clock  in  the  evening  of  the  same  day,  a message  came 
from  Half-King,  who  was  about  six  miles  distant,  saying  that  a party  of 
armed  Frenchmen  were  lying  in  ambush  not  far  away.  Notwithstanding  the 
night  was  intensely  dark  and  the  rain  was  falling  copiously,  Washington 
immediately  set  off  with'  forty  men,  in  single  file,  for  the  camp  of  the  friendly 
Mingo  Chief,  with  whom  he  made  arrangements  to  surprise  the  common  foe 
and  jointly  strike  him.  The  night  had  been  consumed  in  the  difficult  jour- 
ney to  the  Mingo  camp,  and  it  was  after  sunrise  when  the  English  and 
Indians,  each  marching  in  parallel  lines,  in  single  file,  sought  the  hiding-place 
of  the  foe.  It  was  found  among  some  rocks.  Washington,  who  was  at  the 
head  of  the  party  and  carried  a musket,  when  he  saw  the  Frenchmen, 
shouted  Fire ! and  at  the  same  moment  discharged  his  own  gun  among 
them.  The  volleys  of  the  assailants  were  returned  with  spirit.  After  a fight 
for  about  fifteen  minutes,  when  Jumonville,  the  commander  of  the  French 
party  and  ten  of  his  men  were  killed,  the  conflict  ceased.  Only  one  Vir- 
ginian was  killed.  Twenty-two  Frenchmen  were  made  prisoners,  taken  to 
Fort  Necessity,  and  then  sent  over  the  mountains  into  Eastern  Virginia. 
Of  the  fifty  followers  of  Jumonville,  only  fifteen  escaped. 

This  was  the  first  blood  shed  in  the  French  a7id  Indian  war.  So  was 
opened  by  young  Washington,  who  fired  the  first  gun,  that  long  and  bitter 
contest  for  the  rights  of  man  which,  like  an  earthquake,  shattered  into 
fragments  the  institutions  of  feudal  ages  which  had  been  transplanted  in 
our  country,  and  shook  the  foundations  of  society  in  Europe. 

This  skirmish,  which  occurred  on  the  28th  of  May,  1754,  made  a profound 
impression.  It  was  exaggerated  by  French  publicists  and  diplomats. 
France  and  England  were  then  at  peace,  and  were  saying  sweet  things  to 
each  other,  disguising  bitterest  hatred  with  a cloak  of  false  professions  of 
friendship.  The  attack  on  Jumonville  was  denounced  as  an  outrage  by  the 


526 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  III. 


French.  It  was  alleged  that  Jumonville  was  a civil  messenger,  bearing 
a peaceful  despatch,  and  therefore  Washington  was  a murderer.  This  fiction 
passed  into  French  history,  and  has  never  been  expunged.  There  is  no 
clearer  point  in  national  annals  than  the  fact  that  Jumonville  was  the  bearer 
of  a hostile  summons,  and  his  skulking  in  ambush  is  proof  of  his  hostile 
intention.  Contrecoeur  had  begun  war  by  capturing  the  fort  at  the  Forks; 
and  every  circumstance  justified  the  conduct  of  Washington. 

Two  days  after  this  event.  Colonel  Fry  died  at  Will’s  Creek,  leaving  Wash- 
ington in  chief  command.  A few  troops  pressed  forward  to  join  him,  and  he 
was  burdened  at  Fort  Necessity  with  about  forty  families  of  friendly  Indians, 
among  them  those  of  Half-King  and  Queen  Aliquippa.  With  his  little  army 
swelled  to  about  four  hundred  men,  he  moved  toward  Fort  Du  Quesne, 
when  news  came  that  M.  de  Villiers,  brother  of  Jumonville,  had  marched 
with  some  Frenchmen  and  more  than  a thousand  Indians  to  avenge  the 
death  of  his  kinsman.  Washington  fell  back  to  Fort  Necessity  and  strength- 
ened it.  There  he  was  attacked  on  the  3d  of  July  by  six  hundred  French- 
men and  about  three  hundred  Indians,  a reserve  being  concealed  in  the 
woods.  After  a conflict  for  about  nine  hours,  De  Villiers,  finding  his  ammu- 
nition to  be  failing,  proposed  a parley.  It  was  now  twilight.  Washington, 
whose  force  was  much  inferior,  agreed  to  surrender  the  fort  and  troops  on 
the  condition  that  he  and  his  men  should  retire  from  the  stockade  with  the 
honors  of  war  and  return  to  the  inhabited  portion  of  the  country ; the  Vir- 
ginians agreeing  to  restore  the  prisoners  taken  from  Jumonville’s  party,  and 
not  to  erect  any  establishment  west  of  the  mountains  for  the  space  of  a 
year. 

On  the  morning  of  the  4th  of  July,  the  two  commanders,  seated  upon  a 
log  outside  of  the  fort,  with  Indian  chiefs  and  Virginia  officers  looking  on, 
signed  the  capitulation.  Then  the  troops  moved  away,  re-crossed  the  .moun- 
tains to  Will’s  Creek,  and  returned  to  their  homes,  while  their  commander 
hastened  to  Williamsburg  to  report  to  the  governor.  The  conduct  of 
Washington  and  his  men  was  highly  approved  ; and  when  the  House  of 
Burgesses  met,  the  thanks  of  the  colony  were  voted  them  “for  their  bravery 
and  gallant  defence  of  their  country.’’  So  ended  the  first  campaign  of  the 
French  and  Indian  war. 

Meanwhile  a civil  movement  in  the  colonies  of  great  importance  had 
taken  place.  It  was  a movement  in  the  direction  of  a national  union.  For 
some  time  there  had  been  indications  that  the  Indians,  and  particularly  the 
Six  Nations,  influenced  by  French  emissaries,  were  becoming  alienated  from 
the  English.  The  colonists  were  uneasy;  and  the  British  government, 
acting  upon  the  advice  of  the  colonial  governors,  took  measures  to  strengthen 


Chap.  XVIII.  COLONIAL  CONVENTION  IN  ALBANY.  527 

the  good-will  of  the  barbarians.  The  British  Secretary  of  State  issued  a 
circular-letter  to  the  various  colonial  assemblies  proposing  a convention  to 
be  held  at  Albany,  composed  of  committees  from  the  several  assemblies, 
and  representatives  of  the  Six  Nations.  To  this  proposition  seven  of  the 
assemblies  cheerfully  responded,  and  on  the  19th  of  June,  1754,  twenty-five 
delegates  from  these  colonies  met  in  the  old  City  Hall  in  Albany.  James 
De  Lancey,  acting-governor  of  New  York,  was  chosen  to  preside,  and  he 
was  authorized  by  the  Virginia  Assembly  to  represent  that  colony  in  the 
convention.  It  was  an  assembly  of  remarkable  men,  such  as  had  never 


WASHINGTON  SIGNING  THE  CAPITULATION. 


before  been  seen  on  the  continent.  The  most  remarkable  man  of  all  was 
Dr.  Franklin,  of  Philadelphia,  then  almost  fifty  years  of  age. 

The  chiefs  of  the  Six  Nations  were  there  in  very  great  force.  Among 
them,  as  chief  orator,  was  “ King  Hendrick,”  the  eminent  Mohawk  sachem 
who  was  killed  near  Lake  George,  the  following  year,  while  battling  for  the 
English.  These  barbarians  received  the  first  attention  in  the  convention. 
The  proceedings  were  opened  by  a speech  to  them  by  De  Lancey,  to  which 
Hendrick  responded.  While  they  accepted  the  belts  of  wampum  as  tokens 
of  alliance  and  friendship,  there  was  evident  dissatisfaction  with  the  conduct 


528 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  III. 


of  the  English,  whom  the  orator  frankly  reproved.  Standing  in  the  midst 
of  the  council,  he  spoke  of  the  injustice  and  want  of  spirit  of  the  English, 
with  significant  gestures.  “ We  thank  you,”  he  said,  “ for  renewing  and 
brightening  the  covenant  chain.  We  will  take  this  belt  to  the  Onondagas, 
where  our  council  fire  always  burns,  and  keep  it  so  securely  that  neither  the 
thunderbolt  nor  the  lightning  shall  break  it.  Strengthen  yourselves,  and 
bring  as  many  as  you  can  into  this  covenant  chain.”  Then,  with  his  dark 
eyes  flashing  with  scorn  and  indignation,  he  raised  his  voice,  and  with 
impassioned  manner,  he  exclaimed:  “Look  at  the  French;  they  are  men; 
they  are  fortifying  everywhere ; but,  we  are  ashamed  to  say  it,  you  are  like 
women,  bare  and  open,  without  any  fortifications.”  “ It  is  but  one  step,” 
he  said,  “from  Canada  hither,  and  the  French  may  easily  come  and  turn 
you  out  of  doors.”  Already  many  of  the  Onondagas  had  settled  at  Oswe- 
gatchie  (now  Ogdensburgh,  on  the  St.  Lawrence),  under  the  protection  of 
the  French ; and  some  of  the  Mohawks  complained  bitterly  of  the  seizure 
of  lands  in  the  west,  by  New  Englanders,  that  belonged  to  the  Indians;  but 
the  conference  closed  amicably,  and,  on  the  whole,  satisfactorily  to  both 
parties. 

The  Massachusetts  delegation  had  come  to  the  convention  prepared  to 
suggest  business  quite  as  important  as  a treaty  with  the  Indians.  They 
were  authorized  to  invite  the  convention  to  a consideration  of  the  question 
whether  a union  of  the  colonies  for  mutual  defence  was  not  desirable.  They 
were  also  authorized  by  the  General  Court  to  agree  to  articles  of  union  or 
confedera.tion.  The  proposition  when  submitted  wa^  favorably  received  by 
the  convention,  and  a committee,  composed  of  one  member  from  each 
colony  represented,  was  appointed  to  draw  up  a plan.  That  committee  con- 
sisted of  Hutchinson,  of  Massachusetts;  Atkinson,  of  New  Hampshire; 
Pitkin,  of  Connecticut;  Hopkins,  of  Rhode  Island;  Smith,  of  New  York; 
Franklin,  of  Pennsylvania;  and  Tasker,  of  Maryland. 

The  fertile  brain  of  Dr.  Franklin  had  conceived  a plan  before  he  went  to 
the  convention.  It  was  similar  in  its  leading  features  to  those  proposed  by 
William  Penn  and  Daniel  Coxe,  already  mentioned.  He  submitted  it  to 
the  committee  in  writing,  and  it  was  adopted  after  slight  modifications.  It 
was  debated  in  the  convention  day  after  day,  for  almost  a fortnight,  “ hand- 
in-hand  with  the  Indian  business,”  Franklin  wrote,  and  was  agreed  to  on 
the  nth  of  July  by  all  but  the  delegates  from  Connecticut,  William  Pitkin, 
Roger  Wolcott,  and  Elisha  Williams.  The  union  was  “for  the  general 
defence  of  his  majesty’s  subjects  and  interests  in  North  America,  as  well  in 
time  of  peace  as  of  war.” 

Franklin’s  plan  proposed  a grand  council  or  congress  of  forty-eight  mem- 


Chap.  XVIII. 


franklin’s  plan  of  union. 


529 


bers,  chosen  by  the  several  assemblies,  the  representatives  of  each’  colony 
to  be,  in  number,  in  proportion  to  the  contribution  of  each  to  the  general 
treasury ; that  the  congress  should  choose  their  own  speaker  and  have  the 
general  management  of  all  civil  and  military  affairs,  and  to  enact  general 
laws  in  conformity  to  the  British  constitution  and  not  in  contravention  of 
acts  of  the  imperial  parliament ; to  have  a President-General  (with  Phila- 
delphia the  seat  of  government)  appointed  and  paid  by  the  crown,  who 
should  bear  a negative  or  veto  power  on  all  acts  of  the  congress,  and  to  have, 
with  the  advice  and  consent  of  the  congress,  the  appointment  of  all  military 
officers  and  the  entire  management  of  Indian  affairs,  the  civil  officers  to  be 
appointed  by  the  congress  with  the  approval  of  the  President-General.  This 
plan  of  government  was  similar,  in  its  leading  features,  to  our  National  Con- 
stitution, in  the  framing  of  which  Dr.  Franklin  bore  a conspicuous  part  more 
than  thirty  years  after  the  convention  at  Albany. 

Franklin’s  thoughts  had  been  occupied  with  the  topic  of  union  for  some 
time.  Several  weeks  before,  he  had  published  the  following  paragraph  in 
his  newspaper,  the  Pennsylvania  Gazette,  in  an  account  of  the  seizure,  by  the 
French,  of  the  position  at  the  Forks  of  the  Ohio  “The  confidence  of  the 
French  in  this  undertaking  seems  well-grounded  in  the  present  disunited 
state  of  the  British  colonies,  and  the  extreme  difficulty  of  bringing  so  many 
different  governments  and  assemblies  to  agree  in  any  speedy  and  effectual 
measures  for  our  common  defence  and  security ; while  our  enemies  have  the 
very  great  advantage  of  being  under  one  direction,  with  one  council  and  one 
purse.”  At  the  close  of  the  article  was  a rude  wood-cut  representing  a ser- 
pent, the  ancient  emblem  of  vigor,  separated  into  as  many  parts  as  there 
were  English-American  colonies,  and  under  it,  in  large  letters,  the  words 
Join  or  Die.  This  significant  device,  which  seems  to  have  been  first  used 
by  Franklin,  figured  conspicuously  at  the  opening  of  the  Revolution  twenty 
years  afterward. 

The  Plan  of  Unio7i  adopted  by  the  convention  was  submitted  to  the 
Lords  of  Trade  and  Plantations.  That  body  did  not  approve  of  it,  nor 
even  recommend  it  to  the  consideration  of  the  king.  Neither  was  it  favor- 
ably received  by  the  assemblies,  partly  because  the  royal  governors  at  first 
warmly  recommended  it.  In  endeavors  to  please  both  royalists  and  repub- 
licans, the  convention  utterly  failed.  Franklin  wrote : “The  assemblies  all 
thought  there  was  too  much  prerogative  in  it,  and  in  England  it  was  thought 
to  have  too  much  of  the  democratie,"  and  it  was  rejected. 

When  intelligence  of  the  expulsion  of  the  English  from  the  Ohio  Valley 
reached  the  royal  cabinet,  measures  were  taken  for  the  recovery  of  what  had 
been  lost,  and  for  the  creation  of  a new  colony  west  of  the  Alleghany 


530 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  III. 


Mountains  for  its  security  in  the  future.  The  Earl  of  Albemarle  was  then 
governor-in-chief  of  Virginia,  with  Dinwiddie  as  his  lieutenant.  He  in- 
structed the  latter  to  grant  lands  to  any  persons  desiring  to  settle  in  the 
Ohio  region,  not  more  than  a thousand  acres  to  each.  So  it  was  that  Vir- 
ginia became  the  pioneer  in  the  extension  of  the  colonies  westward,  and  the 
mother  of  States  in  the  great  basins  of  the  Ohio.  At  the  same  time  the 
ministry  were  eager  to  regain,  by  military  power,  what  had  been  lost.  They 
could  not  wait  for  the  slow  process  of  colonization.  Indeed  the  exigencies 
of  the  case  would  not  permit.  The  direction  of  American  affairs  was  left  to 
the  warlike  Duke  of  Cumberland,  then  captain-general  of  the  British  army, 
and  by  his  orders  Dinwiddie  prepared  for  a winter  campaign  against  the 
French.  He  ordered  Washington  to  join  his  regiment  at  Alexandria,  to  fill 
up  the  companies  by  enlistments,  and  to  hasten  to  Will’s  Creek,  where 
Colonel  Innis  was  building  Fort  Cumberland,  and  with  his  own  troops,  and 
the  remnants  of  companies  from  other  colonies,  march  over  the  Alleghany 
Mountains  and  drive  the  French  from  Fort  Du  Quesne.  It  was  so  late  in 
the  year  that  the  mountains  would  be  impassable  on  account  of  snow-drifts 
by  an  army  inadequately  supplied  with  food,  clothing,  and  transportation. 
Washington  knew  this;  and  in  a letter  to  one  of  the  governor’s  council,  he 
vehemently  remonstrated.  His  words  were  heeded,  and  the  mad  scheme 
was  abandoned. 

Meanwhile  French  emissaries  were  busy  among  the  savage  tribes  west  of 
the  mountains,  inciting  them  to  a war  of  extermination  against  the  English. 
The  same  influence  had  caused  a murderous  Indian  raid  upon  the  frontiers 
of  New  England ; and  yet,  in  full  view  of  the  impending  danger,  some  of 
the  colonies  were  strangely  apathetic.  Governor  Shirley  put  forth  energetic 
efforts  in  Massachusetts  to  avert  the  evil.  New  York  subscribed  twenty-five 
thousand  dollars  for  military  service,  and  Maryland  thirty  thousand  dollars 
for  the  same.  The  British  government  sent  over  fifty  thousand  dollars  to 
aid  the  colonists,  and  Virginia  made  an  appropriation  of  the  same  amount. 

The  crown  appointed  Governor  Sharpe,'  of  Maryland,  temporary  com- 
mander-in-chief  of  all  the  colonial  forces.  This  led  to  injurious  disputes 
about  military  rank  and  precedence  among  the  Virginia  officers,  when 
Dinwiddie,  more  zealous  than  wise — more  rash  than  discreet — having  a large 
sum  of  money  at  his  disposal,  and  entirely  ignorant  of  military  affairs, 
assumed  the  responsibility  of  arranging  these  affairs  in  his  colony  as  he 
pleased.  He  enlarged  the  provincial  army  to  ten  companies  of  one  hundred 
men  each  and  broke  it  up  into  companies,  so  that  the  highest  rank  in  that 
little  army  was  captain,  and  at  the  same  time  inferior  in  position  to  the  same 
rank  of  those  commissioned  by  the  crown.  Washington  would  not  submit 


Chap.  XVIII. 


FRANKLIN  AND  GOVERNOR  SHIRLEY. 


531 


to  the  degradation,  but  resigned  his  commission  and  retired  from  the  military 
service. 

Knowing  the  value  of  Washington’s  services  at  that  critical  time,  Gov- 
ernor Sharpe  urged  him  to  remain  in  the  army,  and  intimated  that  he  might 
hold  his  former  commission.  “ This  idea,”  wrote  the  indignant  young  Vir- 
ginian, “ has  filled  me  with  surprise,  for,  if  you  think  me  capable  of  holding 
a commission  that  has  neither  rank  nor  emolument  annexed  to  it,  you  must 
entertain  a very  contemptible  opinion  of  my  weakness,  and  believe  me  to  be 
more  empty  than  the  commission  itself.”  He  declined  the  appointment  and 
added : “ I shall  have  the  consolation  of  knowing  that  I have  opened  the 
way,  when  the  smallness  of  our  numbers  exposed  us  to  the  attacks  of  a 
superior  enemy ; and  that  I have  had  the  thanks  of  my  country  for  the 
services  I have  rendered.” 


DISCUSSION  BETWEEN  FRANKLIN  AND  SHIRLEY. 


The  early  portion  of  the  ensuing  winter  was  spent  by  the  colonists  in 
anxious  solicitude.  France  and  England  had  been  coquetting,  with  mutual 
professions  of  friendship,  while  every  movement  of  the  French  in  America 
indicated  hostile  intentions.  The  necessity  of  a colonial  union  was  never 
more  apparent  than  then,  and  Franklin,  who  had  set  his  heart  on  the  project, 
visited  Shirley  to  confer  with  him  on  the  subject.  At  the  governor’s  house 
in  Boston  they  discussed  the  topic  long.  Shirley  was  favorable  to  union, 
but  it  must  be  effected  by  the  fiat  of  the  British  government,  and  not  by  the 
spontaneous  act  of  the  colonists.  Franklin’s  love  of  popular  liberty  would 


532 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  111. 


not  consent  to  such  a union,  and  he  parted  from  Shirley  with  the  assurance 
of  the  latter  that  he  would  immediately  recommend  not  only  a union 
planned  by  parliament,  but  a tax. 

Meanwhile  the  British  government,  perceiving  the  peril  of  English 
dominion  in  America,  resolved  to  send  military  aid  to  the  colonists.  Edward 
Braddock,  an  Irish  officer  of  distinction  then  in  Ireland,  was  appointed  com- 
mander-in-chief of  all  British  forces  in  America,  and  was  ordered  to  proceed 
immediately  to  Virginia  with  two  regiments  of  regular  troops.  He  was  a 
man  soured  by  broken  fortunes ; haughty  in  spirit ; brutal  in  manners ; con- 
ceited and  brave.  He  was  ordered  to  call  a council  of  royal  governors  on 
his  arrival  in  America,  and  to  exact  a revenue  from  the  colonies  for  military 
service.  They  were  also  to  be  informed  that  it  was  the  king’s  pleasure 
“ that  a fund  be  establislied  for  the  benefit  of  all  the  colonies  collectively  in 
North  America” — a financial  union — and  that  the  general  and  field  officers 
of  the  provincial  forces  should  have  no  rank  when  serving  with  the  general 
and  field-officers  commissioned  by  the  king. 

Braddock  sailed  with  his  two  regiments.  “ What  does  that  mean  ? ” 
inquired  the  French  minister.  “Only  defence,  that  the  general  peace  may 
not  be  disturbed,”  replied  the  perfidious  Duke  of  New  Castle,  of  whom  it 
had  been  written  : 

“ He  makes  no  promise  but  to  break  it  ; 

Faithful  to  nought  but  his  own  ends, 

The  bitterest  enemy  to  his  friends  ; 

But  to  his  fixt,  undaunted  foe, 

Obsequious,  base,  complying,  low. 

Cunning  supplies  his  want  of  parts  ; 

Treason  and  lies  are  all  his  arts.” 

Each  government,  evidently  playing  false  toward  the  other,  made  friendly 
propositions  for  mutual  concessions  that  were  simply  impossible ; and  so  the 
matter  stood  when  Braddock  arrived  in  Chesapeake  Bay,  with  his  two 
regiments  borne  by  vessels  under  Admiral  Keppel.  He  first  visited  Gover- 
nor Dinwiddie,  at  Williamsburgh,  and  then  repaired  to  Alexandria,  on  the 
Potomac,  with  the  admiral,  where,  at  the  middle  of  April,  he  held  a council 
with  royal  governors  at  the  fine  house  of  Jonathan  Carey.  The  governors 
present  were  Shirley,  of  Massachusetts;  De  Lancey,  of  New  York;  Sharpe, 
of  Maryland;  Morris,  of  Pennsylvania;  Dobbs,  of  North  Carolina;  and 
Dinwiddie,  of  Virginia.  These  crown-officers  told  Braddock  at  the  outset 
that  the  Assemblies  would  not  comply  with  his  demand  for  a revenue,  nor 
the  wishes  of  the  king  for  a general  fund  for  military  purposes ; and  they 
agreed  that  it  would  be  proper  to  recommend  the  government  to  take 
measures  to  force  the  colonies  to  bear  their  share  of  the  expenses  of  the 


Chap.  XVIII. 


PLAN  OF  THE  CAMPAIGN  OF  1 75  5. 


533 


regular  troops  sent  here.  A communication  to  that  effect,  signed  by  the 
governors  and  the  general,  was  sent  to  the  ministers ; but  events  would  not 
wait  on  governors  nor  legislation.  The  council  at  Alexandria  were  com- 
pelled to  take  immediate  action,  or  all  would  be  lost.  The  warm  weather 
was  coming,  and  so  were  the  French  and  Indians.  So  the  council  planned 
the  campaign  for  1755,  depending  upon  the  imperial  government  and  the 
free-will  of  the  colonists  for  the  necessary  supplies  in  executing  it.  Three 
separate  expeditions  were  planned.  One  was  to  proceed  against  Fort  Du 
Quesne,  led  by  General  Braddock  ; a second  was  to  attack  Fort  Niagara  at 
the  mouth  of  the  Niagara  River,  and  Fort  Frontenac  at  the  foot  of  Lake 
Ontario  on  the  .site  of  Kingston,  and  was  to  be  led  by  General  Shirley.  A 
third  expedition,  led  by  William  Johnson  (a  nephew  of  Admiral  Sir ’Peter 
Warren,  and  then  the  government  superintendent  of  Indian  affairs  among 
the  Six  Nations),  was  to  attempt  the  seizure  of  Crown  Point  on  Lake  Cham- 
plain. A fourth  expedition  had  already  been  planned  in  the  East,  for  the 
expulsion  of  the  French  from  Nova  Scotia,  and  possibly  the  recapture  of 
Louisburg. 

The  colonists  were  delighted  by  evidences  that  the  imperial  government 
intended  to  help  them  in  their  unequal  contest  with  the  French  and  Indians. 
They  laid  aside  their  grievances,  and  with  zeal  and  patriotism  joined  the 
government  in  preparations  for  war.  All  of  the  colonial  legislatures,  ex- 
cepting Pennsylvania  and  Georgia,  voted  men  and  supplies  for  the  impend- 
ing conflict.  The  Quaker  Assembly  of  Pennsylvania  were  conscientiously 
opposed  to  military  movements,  and  Georgia  was  too  indigent  in  men  and 
money  to  do  anything. 


CHAPTER  XIX. 


THE  ENGLISH  BEGIN  HOSTILITIES  ON  THE  SEA — EXPULSION  OF  THE  ACADIAN'S  FROM  NOVA  SCOTIA 
— HATRED  OF  THE  ACADIANS  BY  BRITISH  OFFICIALS — BRADDOCK’S  PRIDE  AND  FOLLY — HIS 
ARMY  MOVES  SLOWLY  TOWARD  FORT  DU  QUESNE — WASHINGTON  ON  BRADDOCK’S  STAFF — 
GIVES  GOOD  ADVICE — A DETACHMENT  OF  THE  ARMY  MOVES  MORE  RAPIDLY — WASHINGTON’S 
WISE  ADVICE  REJECTED — BRADDOCK’S  ARMY  DEFEATED  IN  BATTLE  AND  HIMSELF  SLAIN — 
RETREAT  OF  THE  ARMY — WASHINGTON  MARVELLOUSLY  PROTECTED — SHIRLEY’S  EXPEDITION  A 
FAILURE — EXPEDITION  UNDER  JOHNSON  AT  THE  HEAD  OF  LAKE  GEORGE— APPROACH  OF  A 
FRENCH  ARMY. 

¥ "^HE  French,  false  themselves,  did  not  believe  Newcastle’s  assur- 
I ance ; and  when  Keppel  sailed  with  Braddock’s  troops,  they  sent  a 

A fleet  with  soldiers,  under  the  veteran  Baron  Dieskau,  to  reinforce 

their  army  on  the  St.  Lawrence.  With  Dieskau  went  Vaudreuil,  the  suc- 
cessor of  Du  Quesne  as  governor  of  Canada.  Admiral  Boscawen,  with  some 
English  ships,  pursued  the  French  fleet,  and  they  came  together  south  of 
Newfoundland.  “Are  we  at  peace  or  war?”  asked  the  French.  They  were 
answered  by  the  thunder  of  Boscawen’s  cannon.  Two  of  the  French  ships 
were  captured  ; the  remainder  escaped  and  landed  the  governor,  with  Dieskau 
and  his  troops,  at  Quebec,  late  in  June. 

Meanwhile  the  eastern  expedition  had  moved.  Three  thousand  men 
sailed  from  Boston  on  the  20th  of  May,  1755,  under  the  command  of  General 
John  Winslow,  a great  grandson  of  Edward  Winslow  of  the  May-Flower, 
and  then  major-general  of  the  Massachusetts  militia.  They  landed  at  near 
the  head  of  the  Bay  of  Fundy,  where  they  were  joined  by  Colonel  Monck- 
ton  and  three  hundred  British  regulars  and  a small  train  of  artillery  from  a 
neighboring  garrison.  The  French  at  Beau-Sejour  and  other  military  posts 
on  the  peninsula  were  ignorant  of  the  hostile  preparations  of  the  two 
governments,  until  the  appearance  of  this  armament.  Resistance  would 
have  been  in  vain.  The  peninsula  became  an  easy  prey  to  the  English  before 
the  close  of  June.  The  French  soldiers  were  sent  to  Louisburg,  and  the 
Acadians,  who  had  been  forced  into  the  service,  were  granted  an  amnesty. 
But  a sad  fate  awaited  them. 

The  simple  Acadians  expected  forbearance  and  went  on  cultivating  their 
lands.  They  readily  took  an  oath  of  allegiance,  but  could  not  pledge  them- 


Chap.  XIX. 


ACADIANS  RUDELY  TREATED. 


535 


selves  to  bear  arms  against  their  kindred  in  nation  and  religion.  The 
English  coveted  their  fertile  lands,  and  made  their  refusal  a pretext  for 
possessing  them.  A technical  question  in  law  was  raised,  whether  one  who 
refuses  to  take  all  required  oaths  could  hold  lands  in  the  British  dominions. 
It  was  referred  to  the  chief-justice  of  Nova  Scotia,  who  decided  against  the 
Acadians;  when  it  was  determined  to  drive  them  out  of  the  province  and 
force  them  to  settle  in  the  English  colonies.  Not  a word  of  suspicion 
reached  the  ears  of  the  intended  victims  until  the  cruel  plot  was  ripe  for 
execution.  The  command  went  forth  for  their  distribution  among  the  Eng- 
lish colonists.  The  French  government  asked  for  them  the  privilege  of 
leaving  their  lands,  taking  with  them  their  effects,  and  choosing  for  them- 
selves their  future  home.  “No,”  was  the  reply;  “they  are  too  useful 
subjects  to  be  lost ; we  must  enrich  our  colonies  with  them.”  A touching 
memorial  to  the  council  at  Halifax  was  borne  by  a deputation  of  educated 
men,  in  which  they  asked  for  the  restitution  of  the  guns  and  canoes  of  the 
people  for  domestic  use,  and  promising  fidelity  as  the  ransom  for  them. 
The  document  was  read  in  an  humble  manner  by  the  leading  deputy,  to  the 
governor.  That  official  treated  it  and  its  bearers  with  scorn.  “ It  is  highly 
arrogant,  insidious  and  insulting,”  said  Governor  Lawrence.  He  charged 
them  with  intending  to  carry  food  to  the  enemy  in  their  boats,  and  reminded 
them  that  a law  of  the  British  realm  forbade  all  Roman  Catholics  having 
arms  in  the  houses.  He  scolded  the  deputies  without  stint.  “ It  is  not  the 
language  of  British  subjects,”  he  said,  “to  talk  of  terms  with  the  crown,  or 
capitulate  about  their  fidelity  and  allegiance.  What  excuse  can  you  make 
for  your  presumption  in  treating  this  government  with  such  indignity  as  to 
expound  to  them  the  nature  of  fidelity?  Manifest  your  obedience  by  imme- 
diately taking  the  oaths  required,  before  the  council.”  The  deputies  meekly 
replied:  “We  will  do  as  our  people  may  determine,”  and  asked  leave  to 
return  home  and  consult  them. 

On  the  following  day  they  saw  the  peril  of  themselves  and  their  people, 
and  offered  to  take  the  oaths.  “ By  a law  of  the  realm,”  said  the  governor,. 
“ Roman  Catholics  who  have  once  refused  to  take  the  oaths  cannot  be  per- 
mitted to  do  so  afterward,  and  are  considered  Popish  recusants ; ” and  as 
such  they  were  cast  into  prison.  The  chief-justice  insisted  that  all  the 
French  inhabitants — hundreds  of  innocent  families — were  rebels  and  Popish 
recusants ; that  they  stood  in  the  way  of  English  interests  in  the  country ; 
that  they  had  forfeited  their  possessions  to  the  crown,  and  advised  against 
the  receiving  of  any  of  the  French  inhabitants  to  take  the  oath,  and  also  the 
removing  of  all  of  them  from  the  province. 

Execution  of  the  cruel  measure  recommended  speedily  followed  the 

35 


536 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Kook  111. 


in  regard  to  the  French  inhabitants  of  the  province.  “Your  lands  and 
tenements,”  he  said,  “ cattle  of  all  kinds,  and  live-stock  of  all  sorts,  are 
forfeited  to  the  crown,  and  you,  yourselves,  are  to  be  removed  from  this,  his 
province.  I am,  through  his  majesty’s  goodness,  directed  to  allow  you 
liberty  to  carry  off  your  money  and  household  goods,  as  many  as  you  can, 
without  discommoding  the  vessels  you  go  in.”  Then  he  said,  “You  are 
now  the  king’s  prisoners.” 

Consternation  suddenly  filled  every  household  in  Grand  Prd.  Nineteen 
hundred  and  twenty-three  men,  women  and  children  were  driven  on  board 
British  vessels  at  the  point  of  the  bayonet,  from  Grand  Prd  alone.  The 


utterances  of  the  opinion  of  the  chief-justice.  A general  proclamation  was 
issued  ordering  all  the  Acadians,  “ old  men  and  young  men,  and  lads  ten 
years  of  age,”  to  assemble  at  designated  places,  on  the  5th  of  September, 
1755.  They  obeyed.  The  proceedings  at  one  place  afford  a fair  picture  of 
those  at  all  others.  At  Grand  Prd,  four  hundred  and  eighteen  unarmed  men 
were  assembled.  They  were  marched  into  the  church,  where  they  were 
addressed  by  Winslow,  the  Massachusetts  militia  general.  He  told  them 
they  had  been  called  together  to  hear  the  decision  of  the  King  of  England 


THE  ACADIANS  DRIVEN  INTO  EXILE. 


Chap.  XIX. 


FATE  OF  THE  ACADIANS. 


537 


men  and  boys  assembled  at  the  church,  went  first ; the  sisters,  wives  and 
daughters  had  to  wait  for  other  transports.  They  marched  from  the  church 
to  the  water’s  edge,  some  in  sullen  despair,  others  with  hands  clasped  and 
eyes  uplifted,  praying  and  weeping,  and  others  singing  hymns,  while  on  each 
side  of  the  sad  procession  was  a row  of  women  and  children  on  their  knees 
imploring  blessings  upon  the  heads  of  the  dear  ones. 

The  fate  of  the  people  of  Grand  Pre  was  the  fate  of  all.  The  wrath  of 
the  English  excited  against  the  French  for  their  long  and  cruel  warfare  upon 
the  frontier  settlements  of  New  England,  with  their  savage  allies,  was  poured 
out  in  full  measure  upon  the  heads  of  this  innocent  pastoral  people,  who 
had  never  voluntarily  lifted  sword  nor  spear  nor  firebrand  to  harm  the 
English.  Many,  forewarned,  tried  to  escape.  A hundred  families  near 
Annapolis  fled  to  the  woods,  where  they  were  hunted  by  the  troops  like 
noxious  wild  beasts.  Many  were  shot  dead  by  watching  sentinels.  An 
English  officer  wrote  in  cool  blood  : “ Our  soldiers  hate  these  French  Catho- 
lics, and  if  they  can  find  a pretext  to  kill  them,  they  will.”  Some  hid  in 
the  forests  and  among  the  rocks  in  remote  parts  of  the  peninsula ; some 
found  their  Avay  to  Quebec,  and  many  were  sheltered  from  the  English  and 
fed  in  the  wigwams  of  the  so-called  savages.  But  seven  thousand  were 
borne  away  by  English  ships,  and  scattered  among  the  English  colonies. 
To  prevent  their  return,  their  villages  and  rural  homes  in  Nov'^a  Scotia  were 
laid  waste  by  flames,  and  their  live-stock  was  used  by  English  officials.  A 
large,  beautiful  and  fertile  tract  of  country  became  a solitude  and  deso- 
lation— a precious  offering  upon  the  altar  of  greed,  hatred,  bigotry  and 
fear. 

The  sufferings  of  the  Acadians  were  acute  in  exile.  Many  families, 
separated  at  the  outset  by  the  cruel  arrangements  for  their  transportation, 
were  never  re-united,  and  the  English  colonial  newspapers  contained  adver- 
tisements seeking  information  about  parts  of  dismembered  families.  They 
were  dropped  along  the  shores  of  the  colonies  from  the  Penobscot  to  the 
Savannah  without  resources,  and  ignorant  of  the  language  of  the  people 
among  whom  they  were  cast  excepting  in  South  Carolina,  where  they 
received  great  kindness  from  the  Huguenot  families  there.  They  abhorred 
the  almshouse,  and  dreaded  servitude  in  English  families.  They  yearned 
for  their  native  land  with  sadness  as  intense  as  that  of  the  Hebrews  on  the 
borders  of  the  rivers  of  Babylon ; and  many  wandered  through  the  forests 
to  Louisiana  and  Canada — men,  women  and  children — sheltered  by  bush- 
camps  and  partaking  of  the  hospitalities  of  the  Indians,  that  they  might 
rest  under  French  dominion.  Some  families  actually  went  to  sea  in  open 
boats,  to  find  their  way  back  to  Acadie,  and  coasting  along  the  shores  to 


538 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  IH. 


New  England,  were  there  met  by  orders  from  Nova  Scotia  to  stop  all  return- 
ing fugitives. 

Many  touching  stories  are  told  of  parents  seeking  and  finding  children  ; 
of  children  seeking  and  finding  parents,  and  of  the  wanderings  of  lovers  in 
search  of  each  other,  and  of  unexpected  meetings.  This  portion  of  the 
history  of  these  captive  exiles  lends  beauty  and  pathos  to  many  a page  of 
Longfellow' s Evangeline.  When  I was  in  Montreal,  many  years  ago,  the 
following  well-authenticated  story  was  told  to  me  : 

A beautiful  maiden,  daughter  of  a wealthy  citizen  of  Grand  Pre,  was  to 
be  married  in  the  church  there,  to  a son  of  the  local  magistrate  of  that 
village,  on  the  day  when  Winslow  pronounced  the  doom  of  the  colony. 
They  were  dressed  for  the  nuptials  that  were  to  be  celebrated  immediately 
after  the  conference  with  the  English  officers,  in  the  presence  of  the  “ old 
and  young  men  and  lads  of  ten  years,”  there  assembled.  Alas  ! the  young 
man  was  among  the  prisoners  then  made  and  doomed  to  perpetual  exile. 
As  he  passed  to  the  ship  in  the  sorrowful  procession,  he  kissed  the  kneeling, 
weeping,  heart-broken  maiden,  and  said  hurriedly : “ Adele,  trust  in  God  and 
all  will  be  well!”  He  was  landed  at  the  city  of  New  York,  and  made  his 
way  to  the  St.  Lawrence,  where  he  became  a trader  with  the  Indians.  The 
maiden  and  her  mother  followed  a fortnight  later,  and  were  also  landed  at 
New  York.  They  accepted  the  hospitalities  of  a Huguenot  family  far  up 
the  Hudson  River.  Soon  aftenvard  a band  of  Mohawks,  because  of  some 
affront,  made  a raid  into  the  settlement,  and  the  maiden  was  carried  away 
captive  by  an  old  chief  who  led  the  band,  into  the  deep  wilderness  of  the 
Saeondaga. 

Meanwhile  Jean  Baptiste  Le  Cceur,  the  young  Acadian,  had  nev'^er  lost 
his  faith  in  the  prophecy  of  his  heart  at  parting,  that  he  and  Adele  would 
meet  again  and  be  happy.  He  was  now  trading  with  some  Mohawks  at  the 
French  mission  at  Crown  Point.  One  of  the  young  barbarians  told  him 
that  a beautiful  French  girl,  the  captive  of  an  old  chief,  who  treated  her 
tenderly  as  a daughter,  was  then  in  the  Scarron  (Schroon)  Valley.  Le  Coeur 
was  instantly  impressed  with  the  belief  that  she  was  his  lost  Adele.  He 
accompanied  the  young  Mohawk  to  the  borders  of  Scarron  Lake,  where  he 
found  the  lodge  of  the  chief.  As  he  approached  it,  in  the  shadows  of  the 
forest,  he  saw  a young  woman,  with  her  back  toward  him,  sitting  on  a mat 
at  the  door  of  the  wigwam  feathering  some  arrows.  On  her  head  was  a 
French  cap.  Her  neck  was  fair.  He  approached  her  gently.  Their  eyes 
met.  The  maiden  sprang  from  the  mat,  and  uttering  a wild  cry  of  Jean  ! 
she  fell,  fainting,  in  her  lover’s  arms.  It  was  a moment  of  supreme  joy. 
The  prophecy  of  Le  Coeur’s  heart  was  fulfilled.  The  old  chief,  touched  with 


Chap.  XIX. 


THE  ACADIANS  PERSECUTED. 


539 


mercy  and  compassion,  gave  away  his  pale-faced  daughter  before  the  altar  at 
Crown  Point,  where  the  affianced  at  Grand  Pre  were  married  by  a revered 
priest  of  the  beloved  church,  in  the  bosom  of  the  wilderness.  Descendants 
of  Jean  Baptiste  and  Adele  now  occupy  a high  social  position  in  Montreal. 

The  English  officials  pursued  the  smitten  Acadians  with  a rod  of  hatred, 
after  their  expulsion.  When  Lord  Loudon  was  commander-in-chief  of  the 
British  forces  in  America,  some  of  the  Acadians,  settled  in  Pennsylvania, 
ventured  to  address  a respectful 
petition  to  him.  The  cold- 
blooded earl,  offended  because 
the  document  was  in  the  French 
language,  brutally  seized  five  of 
the  leading  men  who  signed  the 
petition,  and  who  had  been  per- 
sons of  wealth  and  distinction  in 
Nova  Scotia,  and  sent  them  to 
England  with  a request  that,  to 
prevent  their  being  troublesome 
in  the  future,  they  should  be  con- 
signed to  hard  service  as  com- 
mon sailors  in  the  British  navy. 

The  king  appears  to  have  ap- 
proved the  measure ; and  the 
Lords  of  Trade,  when  the  exodus 
from  and  the  desolation  of  Acadia 
was  completed,  congratulated  the 
British  monarch — the  profligate 
Hanoverian — that  “ the  zealous 
endeavors  of  Lawrence  [gover- 
nor of  Nova  Scotia]  had  been 
crowned  with  entire  success.” 

The  annals  of  the  most  barbarous 
nations  can  afford  nothing  more 

exquisitely  cruel  than  the  treatment  these  poor  people  received  from  their 
English  conquerors.  “ We  have  been  true  to  our  religion  and  to  ourselves, 
yet  nature  appears  to  consider  us  only  as  objects  of  public  vengeance,” 
said  some  of  them  who  remained  in  Nova  Scotia,  sadly,  in  a petition 
to  the  local  government  for  relief. 

During  these  movements  in  the  East,  the  expedition  against  Fort  Du 
Quesne  had  begun  and  ended.  Braddock,  sanguine  and  dogmatic,  had 


540 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  III. 


written  to  Newcastle  from  Williainsburgh,  that  he  should  be  beyond  the 
Alleghanies  before  the  close  of  April.  In  an  interview  with  Dr.  Franklin 
at  Frederick,  Marjdand,  he  told  the  statesman,  in  a boastful  manner,  what 
he  should  do  elsewhere  in  America,  after  he  had  captured  the  Ohio  fort, 
lie  saw  no  serious  obstacles  in  his  way.  The  philosopher,  seeing  how 
shallow  was  the  general’s  knowledge  of  the  impediments  before  him,  ventured 
to  say  at  the  commander’s  dinner-table  that  the  mountains  were  hard  to  pass 
with  troops  and  their  supplies,  and  that  the  Indians  were  dexterous  in  laying 
and  executing  ambushes.  “ The  savages,”  said  Braddock  haughtily,  “ may 
be  formidable  to  your  raw  American  militia  ; upon  the  king’s  regulars  and 
disciplined  troops,  it  is  impossible  they  should  make  any  impression.”  This 
remark  was  a key  to  the  secret  of  his  subsequent  misfortunes. 

The  army  for  the  recovery  of  Fort  Du  Quesne  assembled  at  Alexandria. 
Colonels  Dunbar  and  Sir  Peter  Halket  were  Braddock’s  chief  lieutenants. 
There  Colonel  Washington,  who  had  been  invited  by  Braddock  to  join  his 
military  family  as  aid,  and  retain  his  title,  and  had  agreed  to  accept  the 
position,  but  as  a volunteer  only,  had  his  first  interview  with  the  general. 
The  young  Virginian  joined  the  army  at  Will’s  Creek  (Cumberland)  in  May, 
where  it  had  been  detained  by  lack  of  horses  and  wagons  for  transporta- 
tion, which  Dr.  Franklin,  when  called  upon,  promptly  supplied  from  Penn- 
sylvania. The  whole  force  gathered  there,  regulars  and  provincials,  each  in 
about  equal  numbers,  was  two  thousand  men.  Braddock  looked  upon  the 
latter  with  contempt,  and  wrote  to  ministers  that  he  did  not  expect  much 
from  them  because  they  had  “little  courage  or  good-will.”  In  his  petulance 
because  of  frequent  breaches  of  promise  on  the  part  of  contractors,  he 
charged  the  whole  American  people  with  a want  of  ability,  honor  and 
honesty,  and  raved  at  times  like  a madman.  Washington  found  him,  as  he 
wrote  to  William  Fairfax,  “incapable  of  arguing  without  warmth,  or  giving 
up  any  point  he  asserts,  be  it  ever  so  incompatible  with  reason  or  common 
sense.” 

The  distance  from  Cumberland  to  Fort  Du  Quesne  was  about  one  hun- 
dred and  thirty  miles.  At  the  close  of  May,  five  hundred  pioneers  were  sent 
forward  to  clear  the  pathway  and  collect  stores  at  Fort  Necessity;  but  the 
main  army  was  not  ready  to  move  until  the  loth  of  June.  This  delay  gave 
the  French  time  to  gather  their  barbarian  allies  and  well-prepare  to  receive 
the  English.  Washington  was  impatient;  and  at  the  middle  of  June,  he 
ventured  to  advise  Braddock  to  detach  a part  of  the  army  in  light  marching 
order,  with  the  artillery,  and  send  them  forward,  leaving  the  remainder  to 
move  more  slowly.  The  general  consented,  and  with  twelve  hundred  men 
under  Sir  Peter  Halket,  he  pushed  forward  on  the  19th  of  June.  The  pro- 


Chap.  XIX. 


A HAUGHTY  BRITISH  GENERAL. 


541 


vincials  in  the  advance  were  entrusted  to  the  command  of  Washington,  and 
were  eager  to  press  on,  but  were  restrained  by  the  regulars ; and  it  was  the 
8th  of  July  before  the  advanced  division  of  the  army  reached  the  forks  of 
the  Monongahela  and  Youghiogany  rivers,  where  they  rested  until  the 
morning  of  the  ninth.  They  were  then  about  a dozen  miles  from  Fort  Du 
Quesne. 

The  English  forded  the  Monongahela  on  the  morning  of  the  9th  of  July, 
and  advanced  along  its  southern  shores.  Washington  knew  the  perils  of 
their  situation,  for  the  troops  were  disposed  in  solid  platoons,  after  the 
fashion  of  European  tactics.  He  ventured  to  remonstrate  with  Braddock 


FLIGHT  OF  THE  ENGLISH  TROOPS. 


and  advise  him  to  dispose  his  army  in  open  order,  and  employ  the  Indian 
mode  of  fighting  in  the  forests.  The  colonel  was  silenced  by  the  general 
angrily  saying,  “ What ! a provincial  colonel  teach  a British  general  how  to 
fight ! ” 

The  army  moved  on,  re-crossed  the  Monongahela  to  the  north  side,  and 
were  marching  in  fancied  security  on  the  part  of  the  regulars  at  about  noon 
on  that  hot  July  day,  when  they  were  suddenly  assailed  by  volleys  of  bullets 
and  clouds  of  arrows  on  their  front  and  flanks.  They  had  fallen  into  an 
ambush  against  which  Washington  had  vainly  warned  the  haughty  general. 

De  Beaujeu,  the  commander  of  a party  of  less  than  three  hundred  French 
and  Canadians,  and  little  more  than  six  hundred  Indians,  had  been  sent  from 
the  fort  by  Contrecoeur  to  meet  the  advancing  English.  They  came  upon 
the  latter  sooner  than  De  Beaujeu  expected,  but  the  ambush  was  quickly 
and  skillfully  formed.  He  fought  bravely  and  fell  in  the  first  deadly  on- 
slaught between  the  combatants.  The  suddenness  of  the  attack  and  the 


542 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  III, 


horrid  war-whoop  of  the  Indians,  which  the  regulars  had  never  heard  before, 
so  frightened  them  that  they  were  disconcerted  and  thrown  into  confusion  ; 
and  nothing  saved  the  little  army  from  total  destruction  or  capture  but  the 
more  skillful  manoeuvres  of  the  provincials  under  Washington,  who  fought 
as  the  Indians  did. 

The  British  officers  behaved  nobly  and  did  all  in  their  power  to  encourage 
their  men,  until  they  were  disabled  ; but  the  regulars  soon  became  unman- 
ageable. Braddock,  seeing  the  peril,  was  in  the  front  of  the  fight  rallying 
his  recoiling  troops,  and  inspiring  them  with  what  courage  he  might  by  his 
own  example.  For  more  than  two  hours  the  battle  raged.  Of  the  eighty- 
six  English  officers,  sixty-three  were  killed  or  wounded ; among  the  former 
was  Sir  Peter  Halket.  One-half  of  the  private  soldiers  was  also  killed  or 
wounded.  All  of  Braddock’s  aids  were  disabled ; and  Washington  alone 
was  left  unhurt,  to  distribute  the  orders  of  the  general.  Braddock  had  five 
horses  shot  and  disabled  under  him,  and  finally  a bullet  entered  his  body, 
and  he,  too,  fell  mortally  wounded.  So  bravely  did  the  provincials  maintain 
their  ground  that  they  were  nearly  all  killed.  Of  three  Virginia  companies, 
only  about  thirty  men  were  left  alive.  “ The  dastardly  behavior  of  those 
they  call  regulars,”  Washington  wrote  to  his  mother  from  Cumberland, 
■“  exposed  all  others  that  were  inclined  to  do  their  duty  to  almost  certain 
death ; and  at  last,  despite  of  all  the  efforts  of  the  officers  to  the  contrary, 
they  ran,  as  sheep  pursued  by  dogs,  and  it  was  impossible  to  rally  them.” 

Washington,  perceiving  that  the  day  was  lost — his  dying  general  carried 
from  the  field,  and  the  British  regulars  running  for  their  lives — rallied  the 
provincial  troops,  and  gallantly  covered  the  retreat.  The  French  and  In- 
dians did  not  follow.  Colonel  Dunbar,  in  the  rear,  received  the  broken 
army  on  the  I2th  of  July.  Then  they  all  fled  first  to  Fort  Cumberland, 
which  was  abandoned,  and  thence  marched  to  Philadelphia.  Washington 
and  the  southern  provincials  went  back  to  Virginia  ; and  so  ended  the  second 
■expedition  of  the  campaign  of  1755. 

The  British  had  left  their  cannon  and  their  dead  on  the  battle-field ; and 
the  body  of  Braddock,  from  which  life  had  departed  three  days  after  the 
conflict,  was  buried  in  the  forest  more  than  fifty  miles  from  Cumberland.  It 
was  borne  to  the  grave  and  interred  by  torch-light  on  the  evening  of  the 
15th  of  July,  when  Washington,  surrounded  by  sorrowing  officers,  read  the 
impressive  funeral  service  of  the  Church  of  England.  That  grave  may  be 
seen  near  the  National  Road,  between  the  54th  and  55th  mile-stones. 

The  protection  of  Washington  from  harm  during  that  battle  was  wonder- 
ful. “ I luckily  escaped  without  a wound,”  he  wrote  to  his  mother,  “ though 
I had  four  bullets  through  my  coat,  and  two  horses  shot  under  me.”  At 


I 


Chap.  XIX. 


EXPEDITION  AGAINST  FORT  NIAGARA. 


543 


one  time  an  Indian  chief  singled  him  out  for  death  by  his  rifle,  and  directed 
his  followers  to  do  the  same.  Fifteen  years  afterward,  when  Washington 
was  in  the  Ohio  country,  that  chief  traveled  many  a weary  mile  to  see  the 
man  at  whom  he  said  he  had  fired  more  than  a dozen  fair  shots,  but  could 
not  hit  him.  “ We  felt  that  some  Manitou  guarded  your  life,”  said  the 
chief,  “ and  we  believed  you  could  not  be  killed.”  “ By  the  all-powerful 
dispensations  of  Providence,”  Washington  wrote  to_  his  brother  John 
Augustine,  “ I have  been  protected  beyond  all  human  probability  or 
expectation.  Death  was  levelling  my  companions  on  every  side.”  At 
Cumberland,  he  heard  a circumstantial  account  of  his  death,  and  his 
“dying  speech.”  Washington  was  never  wounded  in  battle. 

Governor  Shirley  was  appointed  Braddock’s  successor  in  the  chief  com- 
mand of  the  British  forces  in  America.  The  expedition  led  by  him  to 
operate  against  Forts  Niagara  and  Frontenac  was  not  exposed  to  great  perils 
nor  suffered  serious  disasters.  Nor  did  it  accomplish  much.  After  a very 
fatiguing  march  through  the  wilderness  from  Albany  to  Oswego  on  the 
southern  shore  of  Lake  Ontario,  he  arrived  at  the  latter  place  in  August,  his 
little  army  of  fifteen  hundred  men  reduced  by  sickness  and  dispirited  by  the 
news  of  Braddock’s  disaster.  The  Assembly  of  New  York  had  freely  voted 
men  and  money  for  the  expedition,  and  the  Six  Nations  had  promised  many 
warriors ; but  on  the  first  of  September,  not  more  than  twenty-five  hundred 
able-bodied  men  were  in  camp  at  Oswego. 

The  energetic  Shirley  was  not  disheartened.  There  was  a small,  dilapi- 
dated fort  at  Oswego.  He  at  once  began  to  strengthen  the  post  by  erecting 
two  stronger  forts,  one  on  each  side  of  the  Oswego  River,  which  there  enters 
the  Lake  between  high  banks.  Fort  Pepperell  (afterward  Fort  Oswego),  on 
the  west  side,  had  a strong  stone  wall,  with  square  towers ; Fort  Ontario  on 
the  east  was  built  of  huge  logs  and  earth.  Shirley  also  constructed  vessels 
to  bear  his  troops  over  the  bosom  of  the  Lake  to  their  future  destination. 
But  reinforcements  did  not  come.  He  waited  all  through  September. 
Storm  after  storm  swept  over  the  Lake,  threatening  any  flotilla  that  he 
might  launch  upon  it  with  great  peril,  if  not  actual  disaster.  The  breath  of 
approaching  winter  began  to  be  keenly  felt,  and,  disappointed,  he  was 
compelled  to  abandon  the  expedition  for  a season.  Leaving  seven  hundred 
troops  to  garrison  the  fort,  the  general  marched  back  to  Albany  with  the 
remainder,  where  he  arrived  late  in  October.  There  he  made  vigorous 
preparations  for  reinforcing  and  supplying  the  garrison  at  Oswego,  for  the 
Marquis  de  Montcalm,  a distinguished  French  soldier,  was  then  governor  of 
Canada,  and  would  be  likely  to  pursue  aggressive  measures  the  following 
spring.  Colonel  John  Bradstreet  was  appointed  commissary-general  at 


544 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  III. 


Albany,  with  Captain  (afterward  General)  Philip  Schuyler  as  his  chief  assist- 
ant. Then  Shirley  returned  to  Massachusetts,  leaving  William  Alexander 
(Lord  Stirling),  his  secretary,  in  New  York. 

In  the  meantime,  the  expedition  entrusted  to  the  leadership  of  William 
Johnson  (then  swaying  immense  influence  over  the  Indians  in  the  IMohawk 
Valley),  and  destined  for  wresting  the  strong  post  of  Crown  Point,  on  Lake 
Champlain,  from  the  French,  had  been  more  successful  than  either  that  of 
Braddock  or  Shirley,  although  it  did  not  achieve  its  intended  object.  His 
army  consisted  chiefly  of  New  England  militia  and  Indians — the  former 
from  Connecticut,  Massachusetts  and  New  Hampshire,  and  the  latter  from 


IDLE  SOLDIERS  AT  LAKE  GEORGE. 


the  Mohawk  Valley.  These  were  assembled  at  Albany,  the  New  England 
men  having  Phineas  Lyman  for  their  chief  commander.  There  were  also 
some  New  York  and  New  Jersey  militia,  with  the  army,  when,  in  July,  it 
was  at  the  head  of  small-boat  navigation  on  the  Hudson,  fifty  miles  above 
Albany,  and  numbering  about  six  thousand  able-bodied  men.  Among  them 
were  Putnam  and  Stark,  who  afterward  became  famous  leaders  in  the  war  for 
independence. 

General  Lyman  was  a graduate  of  Yale  College,  an  acute  statesman  and 
brave  soldier.  While  waiting  on  the  banks  of  the  upper  Hudson  for  John- 
son to  join  him,  he  employed  his  troops  in  the  construction  of  a strong  fort 
of  logs  and  earth,  which  they  insisted  upon  naming  Fort  Lyman,  in  honor  of 
their  beloved  commander.  When  Johnson  came  in  August,  he  deprived  the 


Chap.  XIX. 


THE  CAMP  AT  LAKE  GEORGE. 


•545 


general  of  that  honor,  and  gave  it  the  name  of  Fort  Edward,  in  compliment 
to  a royal  scion.  That  act  has  been  attributed  to  the  jealousy  of  Johnson, 
who  doubtless  did  not  relish  the  popularity  of  his  lieutenant ; but  it  is  more 
probable  that  it  was  done  to  gratify  his  passion  for  flattering  royal  persons. 
He  took  command  of  the  troops  on  his  arrival,  and  with  the  main  body  he 
marched  to  the  head  of  a beautiful  lake,  more  than  a dozen  miles  distant, 
which  the  French  had  named  Holy  Sacrament,  but  which  Johnson,  in  com- 
pliment to  the  king,  named  Lake  George.  There  he  formed  a camp  for  five 
thousand  men,  protected  on  the  north  by  the  lake  and  on  both  flanks  by 
impassable  morasses  and  tangled  forests.  There  the  troops  sat  down  in  idle- 
ness waiting  for  the  coming  of  wagons  with  stores  and  cannon  for  the  expe- 
dition. It  was  a beautiful  summer  camp;  but  no  trench  was  dug,  no  mound 
was  raised,  as  a defence  against  an  active  and  skillful  foe.  The  three  hun- 
dred Mohawk  warriors,  under  “ King  Hendrick,”  were  allowed  to  roam  the 
forests  at  pleasure,  for  Johnson  did  not  dream  that  a French  army,  like  a 
wily  serpent,  was  stealthily  moving  toward  his  camp. 

While  the  English  provincials  were  thus  making  feeble  preparations  for 
seizing  Crown  Point,  the  French  had  been  busy  in  the  execution  of  measures 
to  defend  that  post.  Vaudreuil,  the  governor  of  Canada,  had  called  to  arms 
every  able-bodied  man  in  the  vicinity  of  Montreal,  and  invited  laborers  from 
below  to  come  up  and  gather  the  harvests.  With  these  recruits,  sixteen 
hundred  strong,  seven  hundred  regulars  and  as  many  savages  (almost  half  of 
them  emigrants  from  the  Six  Nations),  the  French  were  prepared  to  defend 
their  fortress  at  Crown  Point.  A greater  portion  of  them  were  placed  under 
the  command  of  the  Baron  Dieskau,  who  proceeded  to  the  head  of  Lake 
Champlain,  whence  he  intended  to  make  a swift  march  upon  Fort  Edward, 
and  capture  it  and  its  garrison  by  surprise.  Four  days,  as  secretly  as  pos- 
sible, he  traversed  the  woods,  when  it  was  found  that  his  guides  had  lost 
their  way,  and  that  he  was  in  the  path  to  the  head  of  Lake  George,  and  four 
miles  from  Fort  Edward.  Indian  scouts  had  told  his  savage  followers  of  the 
great  guns  at  Fort  Edward,  and  that  there  were  more  in  the  camp  on  the 
borders  of  the  lake.  The  barbarians,  afraid  of  cannon,  refused  to  attack  the 
fort,  but  were  willing  to  fall  upon  the  exposed  camp  at  the  head  of  the  lake. 


CHAPTER  XX. 


MILITARY  EVENTS  AT  THE  HEAD  OF  LAKE  GEORGE — HONORS  WRONGLY  BESTOWED — AN  OPPOR- 
TUNITY FOR  SUCCESS  LOST — PERFIDY  OF  THE  BRITISH  CABINET — THE  PROPHECY  OF  JOHN 
ADAMS  AND  ITS  FULFILLMENT — PLANS  FOR  THE  CAMPAIGN  OF  1756 — FRANKLIN  IN  MILITARY 
LIFE — WASHINGTON’S  EMBASSY  TO  BOSTON — HIS  LOVE  AFFAIR  IN  NEW  YORK — LORD  LOUDON 
COMMANDER-IN-CHIEF  — ABERCROMBIE  AT  ALBANY — HIS  FOLLY  AND  SUPINENESS  — BRAD- 
STREET’S  EXPEDITION — THE  FRENCH  CAPTURE  OSWEGO — LOUDON’S  IMBECILITY  ILLUSTRATED — 
THE  RESULTS  OF  THE  CAMPAIGN  OF  1756— LOUDON’S  IGNOBLE  VICTORIES. 

IT  was  a beautiful  evening — the  7th  of  September,  1755 — when  an 
Indian  scout  came  to  Johnson’s  camp,  at  Lake  George,  with  the  start- 
ling news  that  a French  army  had  been  seen  landing  at  the  head  of 
Lake  Champlain,  near  the  site  of  the  village  of  White  Hall.  This  mes- 
senger was  followed  by  another  at  midnight,  with  the  more  alarming  news 
that  French  and  Indians  were  making  a rapid  march  toward  Fort  Edward. 
Early  in  the  morning  a council  was  held,  and  it  was  proposed  to  send  out  a 
small  party  in  three  divisions  to  meet  the  foe.  The  shrewd  Mohawk  sachem 
and  chief.  King  Hendrick,  said:  “If  they  are  to  fight,  they  are  too  few;  if 
they  are  to  be  killed,  they  are  too  many.”  Then  taking  in  his  hands  three 
strong  sticks,  he  said  : “ Put  them  together  and  you  cannot  break  them  ; 
take  them  separately  and  you  can  break  them  easily.”  His  logic  was  ap- 
parent, and  it  was  approved  by  the  general,  who  ordered  twelve  hundred 
men  in  one  body  to  hasten  to  the  relief  of  Fort  Edward.  Colonel  Ephraim 
Williams,  of  Massachusetts,  was  the  chosen  commander  of  the  expedition, 
and  with  him  went  Hendrick  and  two  hundred  warriors  of  the  Six  Nations. 
Before  their  departure  the  white-haired  chief,  whose  snowy  locks  covered  his 
shoulders,  mounted  a gun-carriage  and  harangued  his  braves  with  his  power- 
ful voice,  in  eloquent  words,  exhorting  them  to  be  strong  and  true  to  their 
allies.  A provincial  officer,  Lieutenant-Colonel  (afterward  General)  Pomeroy, 
who  was  present,  declared  that  while  he  could  not  understand  a word  of  the 
old  warrior’s  language,  such  was  the  power  of  his  voice,  his  gestures  and  his 
whole  manner,  that  his  speech  affected  him  more  deeply  than  any  other  he 
had  ever  heard. 

.The  detachment  had  marched  in  fancied  security  to  a defile  at  Rocky 
Brook,  about  four  miles  from  camp,  when  they  were  assailed  in  front  and 


Chap.  XX. 


WILLIAMS  AND  HENDRICK. 


547 


flank  by  musketry  and  arrows.  The  French  and  Indians,  who  had  been 
misled  toward  Johnson’s  camp,  apprised  by  scouts  of  the  march  of  the 
English,  had  formed  an  ambush  in  semi-circular  shape,  the  centre  cut  by  the 
path  along  which  Williams’  detachment  was  moving.  The  latter  had  fallen 
into  the  fatal  trap.  The  attack  was  sharp  and  destructive.  Williams  and 
Hendrick  were  the  only  mounted  men,  and  both  were  killed  at  the  first 
volley.  Williams  fell  dead,  and  Hendrick  died  soon  afterward.  The  smitten 
detachment  fled  back  to  camp  in  a quick 
but  orderly  retreat  conducted  by  Nathan 
Whitney,  of  New  Haven,  Connecticut. 

Colonel  Williams  was  then  about  forty 
years  of  age.  While  he  was  passing 
through  Albany  on  his  way  to  join  John- 
son, he  had  made  a will,  by  which  he  be- 
queathed his  moderate  estate  to  found 
and  maintain  a free  school  in  Western 
Massachusetts.  Such  was  the  foundation 
of  Williams’  College,  at  Williamstown. 

When  Hendrick’s  son  heard  of  the  death 
of  his  father,  he  placed  his  hand  over  his 
heart  and  said : “ My  father  still  lives 
here.  The  son  is  now  the  father,  and 
stands  here  ready  to  fight.”  The  travel- 
ers on  the  highway  between  Glenn’s  Falls 
and  Lake  George  may  see  a monument 
near  the  road,  erected  to  the  memory  of 
Colonel  Williams,  not  far  from  the  spot 
where  he  fell. 

With  strange  apathy  Johnson  had 
made  no  preparations  for  the  defence  of 
his  camp.  It  was  not  until  Williams  had 
marched  on  the  morning  of  the  8th,  that  he  began  to  construct  some  breast- 
works of  felled  trees,  and  placed  two  or  three  cannons  upon  them.  The 
firing  at  the  ambush  had  been  heard  at  the  camp,  and  three  hundred  men 
were  sent  to  the  relief  of  the  first  detachment.  These  met  the  flying  pro- 
vincials, and  joining  in  the  retreat,  they  all  rushed  pell-mell  into  the  camp, 
pursued  by  the  French  and  Indians,  who  had  cast  many  of  their  slain  foes 
into  a slimy  pool  which  is  still  known  as  “ Bloody  Pond.” 

Dieskau  intended  to  rush  into  the  camp  with  the  fugitives  and  capture  it, 
but  his  Indians,  fearing  cannon,  halted  on  the  crest  of  a hill  from  which 


KING  HENDRICK  SPEAKING. 


548 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  III. 


they  could  see  the  dreaded  great  guns.  So  likewise  did  the  intimidated 
Canadians.  Dieskau,  whose  armorial  legend  was,  “ Boldness  wins,”  pressed 
forward  with  his  regulars,  and  at  near  noon  a battle  began.  The  French 
had  no  artillery,  and  their  musket-balls  had  no  effect  upon  the  breastworks. 
The  Canadians  and  Indians  tardily  took  positions  in  sheltered  places  on  the 
flanks,  and  did  little  service.  The  New  Englanders  had  only  their  fowling- 
pieces.  There  was  not  a bayonet  among  them.  They  were  good  marksmen, 
and  kept  their  enemies  at  bay  during  a conflict  of  more  than  four  hours. 
Fortunately  for  the  provincials,  Johnson  was  slightly  wounded  in  the  thigh 
at  the  beginning  of  the  action,  and  retired  to  his  tent.  He  was  not  a skill- 
ful and  experienced  soldier  like  General  Lyman  who  had  just  joined  him, 
and  into  whose  hands  the  conduct  of  the  battle  now  fell.  Lyman  directed 
it  with  skill  and  bravery,  until  a greater  portion  of  the  French  regulars  were 
killed  or  wounded.  A bomb-shell  thrown  by  a howitzer  from  the  provincial 
camp  among  the  Canadians  and  savages  had  made  them  fly  in  terror  to  the 
woods,  when  the  provincials,  leaping  over  their  breastworks,  and  clubbing 
their  muskets,  scattered  the  living  remnants  of  the  assailants.  Dieskau,  who 
had  been  three  times  wounded,  would  not  retire,  but  sat  upon  a stump  of  a 
tree,  with  his  saddle  by  his  side,  faint  from  loss  of  blood,  when,  from  a 
musket  discharged  by  a renegade  Frenchman,  he  received  an  incurable 
wound.  Fie  was  carried  into  the  camp,  where  he  was  tenderly  treated  by 
General  Johnson  and  his  family.  This  kindness  inspired  the  warmest 
gratitude  in  the  breast  of  the  baron,  who,  before  he  left  America  for  France, 
presented  an  elegant  sword  to  Johnson  in  token  of  that  sentiment.  The 
baron  died  in  France,  from  the  effect  of  his  wounds  in  1757. 

This  repulse  was  lauded  in  England  as  a great  victory.  Johnson  had 
very  little  to  do  with  it,  personally.  It  was  the  work  of  General  Lyman  and 
his  New  England  troops.  Yet  the  services  of  Lyman  were  overlooked. 
Johnson  did  not  even  mention  him  in  connection  with  the  battle,  in  his 
despatch.  The  king  created  Johnson  a baronet,  and  parliament  voted  him 
thanks  and  the  sum  of  twenty-five  thousand  dollars  wherewith  to  support 
the  dignity  of  the  title.  The  recipient  being  a nephew  of  Admiral  Sir  Peter 
Warren,  the  influential  friends  of  that  officer,  at  court,  secured  the  honor  for 
Johnson. 

For  reasons  inexplicable  just  now,  the  provincial  commander  remained 
at  the  head  of  Lake  George,  instead  of  pursuing  the  shattered  remnant  of 
Dieskau’s  army  and  driving  the  French  from  Ticonderoga,  which  they  were 
fortifying.  It  was  possible  also,  immediately  after  the  panic  produced  by 
the  repulse  at  Lake  George,  to  drive  them  from  Crown  Point,  the  ultimate 
object  of  the  expedition.  General  Lyman  and  others  urged  Johnson  to 


Chap.  XX. 


TARDINESS  OF  JOHNSON, 


549 


pursue.  The  Mohawks  were  burning  with  a desire  to  be  revenged  for  the 
loss  of  their  beloved  chief ; and  the  Oneidas  were  willing  to  join  them  if 
immediate  pursuit  should  be  made.  But  Johnson  refused  to  move.  The 
Oneidas,  three  days  after  the  battle,  left  him  and  returned  home;  and  the 
only  harm  which  the  French  and  their  allies  experienced  after  leaving  the 
lost  battle-field  was  a severe 
smiting  by  some  New  Hamp- 
shire militia  under  Captain  Mc- 
Ginnes,  and  a small  body  of  New 
York  militia  under  Captain  Fol- 
som, who  were  making  their  way 
to  the  Lake  from  Fort  Edward. 

They  compelled  the  French  to 
leave  all  their  baggage  and  fly 
for  their  lives.  In  the  affray 
McGinnes  was  mortally  wound- 
ed, and  his  name  was  added  to 
the  list  of  the  provincials,  more 
than  two  hundred  in  number, 
who  were  killed  that  day.  There 
were  almost  a hundred  wounded. 

Among  the  four  hundred  lost  by 
the  French  was  M.  de  St.  Pierre, 
the  Knight  of  St.  Louis,  and  the 
commander  to  whom  Washing- 
ton was  sent  on  a mission  at  the 
close  of  1753. 

Johnson  lingered  at  the  head 
of  Lake  George  all  the  autumn, 
and  employed  his  men  in  the 
construction  of  a fort  which  he 
named  William  Henry.  When 
the  breath  of  approaching  winter 
came  from  the  north,  he  dis- 
missed the  New  England  militia  to  their  homes,  and  leaving  garrisons  at 
Forts  Edward  and  William  Henry,  he  retired  to  his  fortified  stone  mansion 
on  the  banks  of  the  lower  Mohawk,  which  he  called  “ Fort  Johnson.”  It  is 
yet  standing  not  far  from  the  village  of  Amsterdam.  So  ended  military 
operations  in  America  in  the  year  1755. 

France  and  England  were  still  at  peace  with  each  other.  The  British 


550 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  HI. 


cabinet  was  then  controlled  by  absurd  men,  who  were  likely  to  embroil  the 
nation  in  useless  war  at  any  time  by  their  folly  or  by  acts  deserving  a harsher 
name.  They  did  so  by  rank  perfidy.  Secret  orders  were  suddenly  issued  to 
the  commanders  of  all  British  men-of-war  to  seize  all  P'rench  vessels,  public 
or  private.  The  British  king’s  share  of  the  spoils  gathered  under  the  opera- 
tions of  this  order  was  three  and  a half  million  dollars ; and  eight  thousand 
French  prisoners  were  made  captives.  “ What  has  taken  place,”  indignantly 
exclaimed  a French  minister,  “ is  nothing  but  a system  of  piracy  on  a grand 
scale  unworthy  of  a civilized  people.”  He  was  right.  “ Never,”  said  the 
French  monarch,  “will  I forgive  the  piracies  of  this  insolent  nation;”  and 
in  an  autograph  letter  to  the  British  king,  he  demanded  full  reparation  for 
the  insults  offered  to  the  French  flag,  and  the  injury  done  to  the  French 
people.  But  Great  Britain  then  arrogantly  claimed,  and  with  reason,  that  she 
was  ‘■'■Mistress  of  the  Seas;”  and  Thomson  had  lately  uttered  the  senti- 
ments of  the  proud  British  nation  in  his  stirring  song,  “ Britannia  rules  the 
Waves,”  saying  boastfully  : 

“When  Britain  first  at  Heaven’s  command, 

Arose  from  out  the  azure  main, 

This  was  the  charter  of  the  land. 

And  guardian  angels  sung  the  strain  ; 

Rule  Britannia,  Britannia  rules  the  waves  ! 

Britons  never  shall  be  slaves.” 

The  exploit  of  the  British  ships-of-war  in  capturing  so  many  French  vessels 
was  boasted  of  in  the  British  parliament,  and  the  people,  rejoicing  in  their 
strength,  were  almost  unanimously  in  favor  of  war  with  the  French.  That 
spirit  prevailed  for  three-quarters  of  a century  until  the  mistressship  of  the 
seas  was  successfully  contended  for  by  the  Americans  in  the  war  of  1812-15. 

The  home  governments  of  the  two  nations  now  took  up  the  quarrel. 
The  campaign  of  1755  had  assumed  all  the  features  of  regular  war  between 
their  respective  subjects.  When  the  flowers  bloomed  in  the  spring  of  1756, 
the  British  ministry  and  people  had  resolved  to  make  war,  and  the  French 
were  compelled  to  accept  the  issue.  On  the  17th  of  May,  1756,  a declara- 
tion of  war  went  forth  from  the  British  cabinet.  This  action  was  recipro- 
cated by  the  French  cabinet  on  the  9th  of  June  following.  The  die  was 
then  cast.  The  peace  solemnly  guaranteed  at  Aix-la-Chapclle  was  ruth- 
lessly broken  to  gratify  a lust  for  power.  While  these  two  potential  nations 
had  been  preparing,  for  several  years,  for  the  impending  strife  for  dominion, 
the  thoughtful  men  among  the  English-American  colonists,  who  loved 
liberty  more  than  power,  had  been  musing  upon  the  glorious  probabilities 
of  their  future.  John  Adams,  a school-teacher  in  Worcester  in  1755,  in  a 


Chap.  XX. 


PROPHECY  BY  JOHN  ADAMS. 


551 


letter  to  Nathan  Webb,  wrote:  “Mighty  states  and  kingdoms  are  not 
exempted  from  change.”  “ Soon  after  the  Reformation,  a few  people  came 
over  into  this  new  world  for  conscience  sake.  This  apparently  trivial  inci- 
dent may  transfer  the  great  seat  of  empire  into  America If  we 

can  remove  the  turbulent  Gallics,  our  people,  according  to  the  exactest  cal- 
culations, will,  in  another  century,  become  more  numerous  than  in  England 
itself.  The  united  force  of  Europe  will  not  be  able  to  subdue  us.  The  only 
way  to  keep  us  from  setting  up  for  ourselves,  is  to  disunite  us.”  This  dream 
became  a prophecy.  Less  than  thirty  years  afterward,  the  dreamer  stocd 
before  the  monarch  of  England,  as  the  representative  of  an  American 
Republic  where,  only  ten  years  before,  were  flourishing  English  colonies. 
And  just  a century  after  that  dream,  the  number  and  strength  of  the  people 
here  exceeded  the  calculation  of  the  dreamer.  The  population  was  more 
than  double  that  of  England  ; and  while  his  country  was  fiercely  torn  by  a 
savage  civil  war,  its  government  defied  the  powers  of  Great  Britain,  France, 
Spain,  the  Papal  States  and  other  European  nations  whose  rulers  were  the 
enemies  of  our  free  institutions.  In  the  utterance  of  that  defiance,  a grand- 
son of  John  Adams  bore  a conspicuous  part.  That  government  lives  to 
enjoy  the  respect  of  the  civilized  world.  In  1765,  Lord  Karnes  uttered  a 
prophecy  similar  to  that  of  young  Adams. 

Shirley,  the  commander-in-chief  of  the  British  forces  in  America, 
called  a convention  of  royal  governors  at  New  York,  late  in  1755,  when 
a plan  for  a splendid  campaign  in  1756  was  arranged.  It  included  the 
capture  of  Quebec,  Forts  Du  Quesne,  Frontenac,  Niagara,  Detroit,  and 
other  French  posts  in  the  aorthwest.  They  again  urged  the  parliament  to 
take  vigorous  measures  for  compelling  the  colonists,  by  a tax,  to  furnish  a 
general  fund  for  military  purposes  in  America,  and  that  body  was  disposed 
to  do  so,  when  the  question  assumed  minor  importance  in  the  presence  of 
grave  dangers.  The  Indians  were  threatening  the  frontier  settlements  of 
Virginia,  Maryland  and  Pennsylvania  with  desolation  ; and  very  soon  whole 
families  were  flying  back  to  the  older  settlements,  leaving  their  dwellings 
and  crops  to  the  mercy  of  the  savages.  The  authorities  of  those  colonies 
took  action  to  stay  the  flood  of  desolation  surging  upon  their  frontiers. 
Those  of  Virginia  appointed  Washington  commander-in-chief  of  all  her 
forces;  those  of  Pennsylvania  gave  Dr.  Franklin  the  commission  of  colonel, 
with  instructions  to  raise  troops  and  construct  a line  of  forts  or  block-houses 
along  the  frontier,  which  he  did.  Those  of  Maryland  joined  in  measures  for 
the  common  defence.  But  the  selfish  claims  of  the  proprietaries  of  Pennsyl- 
vania, and  the  absurd  and  arrogant  assumption  of  inferior  officers  com- 
missioned by  the  crown,  to  superiority  over  provincial  officers  of  much 

36 


552 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  HI. 


higher  rank,  stood  in  the  way  of  efficient  action.  Delays  were  dangerous  to 
the  public  good,  and  Washington  was  chosen  by  his  brother  provincial 
officers  to  go  as  an  ambassador  to  General  Shirley  to  seek  a removal  of  the 
latter-named  difficulty.  Early  in  the  month  of  February,  1756,  he  set  out 
on  a journey  to  Boston,  five  hundred  miles  distant,  on  horseback,  accom- 
panied by  Captains  Mercer  and  Stewart,  the  former  being  his  aide-de-camp. 
His  fame  had  preceded  him,  and  he  received  much  attention  in  the  several 


\ 


A FAMILY  FLYING  FROM  THE  SAVAGES. 


cities  through  which  he  passed.  His  mission  to  Shirley  was  successful,  and 
at  the  end  of  seven  weeks  after  his  departure,  he  returned  to  Williamsburgh 
with  a satisfactory  arrangement  for  the  future. 

While  he  was  on  his  way  to  Boston,  Colonel  Washington  tarried  a little 
in  New  York,  where  he  was  the  guest  of  Beverly  Robinson,  son-in-law  of  the 
Lord  of  the  Phillipse  Manor  on  the  Hudson.  There  he  met  Mrs.  Robinson’s 
sister  Mary,  who  was  young,  vivacious,  accomplished  and  beautiful.  This 
maiden’s  charms  made  a deep  impression  on  the  mind  and  heart  of  the  young 


Chap.  XX. 


WASHINGTON  AND  MARY  PHILLIPSE. 


553 


hero.  Her  musical  culture  was  displayed  by  the  singing  of  sweet  songs  ac- 
companied by  a spinet ; and  in  every  aspect  of  her  character,  she  was  a charm- 
ing young  lady.  The  day-dreams  of  the  young  Virginian,  while  on  his  way 
to  Boston  and  back,  were  of  her ; and  at  their  second  meeting  at  Mr. 
Robinson’s  (where  he  was  a guest  on  his  return),  he  was  still  more  deeply 
impressed  with  the  charms  of  the  heiress  of  money  and  broad  acres.  He 
left  her  with  a resolution  no  doubt  formed,  but  not  expressed,  to  offer  her 
his  hand  and  heart.  But  a rival  soon  appeared  in  the  person  of  Colonel 
Roger  Morris,  Washington’s  companion-in-arms  in  the  field  when  Braddock 
fell,  and  he  won  the  fair  lady  and  her  splendid  fortune.  All  but  the  lady 
was  lost  in  the  fires  of  the  Revolution  that  burst  out  twenty  years  later,  for 
Morris  was  a Tory  and  so  were  his  wife’s  family,  and  their  property  was 
swept  away  by  remorseless  confiscation.  The  colonel  and  his  family  were 
compelled  to  fly  from  the  elegant  mansion  built  on  Harlem  Heights  (yet 
standing)  with  the  money  of  Mary  Phillipse,  and  it  was  used  as  headquarters 
by  her  Virginia  lover  in  the  autumn  of  1776. 

Shirley  did  not  long  remain  commander-in-chief.  The  Earl  of  Loudon, 
a cold-hearted,  bilious,  indolent  and  inefficient  peer,  who  was  a zealous 
advocate  of  the  prerogatives  of  the  crown  and  despised  republicanism,  was 
appointed  the  successor  of  Shirley,  and  governor  of  Virginia.  As  an 
attempt  to  establish  centralized  royal  government  in  America  had  failed,  it 
was  now  determined  to  place  the  colonies  under  absolute  military  rule.  The 
commission  of  Loudon  and  his  instructions,  carefully  drawn  by  the  Chan- 
cellor of  England,  did  establish  such  rule  throughout  the  continent,  making 
it  independent  of  and  superior  to  the  authority  of  the  royal  governors.  This 
commission,  so  contrary  to  the  spirit  of  the  British  constitution,  remained  a 
precedent  for  others  until  the  general  revolt  of  the  colonies. 

Procrastination  marked  every  step  of  the  campaign  on  the  part  of  the 
English.  Loudon  did  not  send  General  James  Abercrombie  (his  lieutenant) 
with  troops  until  near  the  close  of  April.  The  ship  with  money  was  not 
dispatched  until  the  middle  of  June,  at  which  time  Abercrombie  arrived; 
and  the  commander-in-chief  did  not  reach  our  shores  until  past  midsummer. 
The  plan  of  the  campaign  called  for  ten  thousand  men  to  attack  Crown 
Point ; six  thousand  to  proceed  against  Niagara ; three  thousand  against 
Fort  Du  Quesne,  and  two  thousand  to  cross  the  country  from  the  Kennebeck 
to  the  Chaudiere — a feat  performed  by  Arnold  and  a few  followers,  twenty 
years  afterward — to  attack  some  French  settlements  in  Canada.  Many  of 
those  destined  for  Crown  Point  and  Niagara  were  already  at  Albany  when 
Abercrombie  arrived.  He  was  not  remarkable  for  either  vigor  or  fore- 
thought. He  loved  his  ease,  and  was  a great  stickler  for  the  assertion  of 


554 


OUR  COUNTRV. 


Book.  111. 


royal  authority : and  instead  of  stimulating  the  provincials  with  hope  and 
patriotism,  he  depressed  them  with  disappointment  and  disgust.  Seven 
thousand  troops  were  there,  under  General  Winslow,  impatient  to  be  led  to 
Lake  Champlain ; and  another  party  were  anxiously  awaiting  orders  to 
hasten  to  Oswego,  for  rumors  came  down  through  the  forests  from  the  St. 
Lawrence  that  the  French  were  about  to  move  in  large  force  against  the 
English  frontiers. 


WASHINGTON,  AGED  40. 


GENERAL  BRADDOCK. 

WILLIAM  JOHNSON. 


But  the  Scotch  general  seemed  more  intent  upon  asserting  royal  au- 
thority by  forcing  the  colonists  to  have  the  regular  troops  quartered  upon 
them,  than  in  pressing  forward  against  the  enemy ; and  he  cast  a firebrand 


Chap.  XX. 


DILATORY  AND  ACTIVE  OFFICERS. 


555 


into  the  army  at  Albany  (composed  of  regular  and  provincial  troops,  about 
ten  thousand  strong),  by  compelling  the  officers  of  the  latter  to  obey  the 
commands  of  those  of  the  former  of  equal  rank.  He  and  Mayor  Sybrant 
Van  Schaick  had  many  stormy  interviews  about  the  billeting  of  regulars 
upon  the  people.  On  one  occasion,  there  was  an  open  quarrel  between  the 
lean  Scotchman  and  the  burly  Dutchman,  when  the  mayor,  terribly  excited, 
shook  his  fist  at  the  general  and  exclaimed  : “ Go  back  again  with  your 
troops;  we  can  defend  our  frontiers  ourselves.”  The  general  triumphed; 
and  he  sent  to  his  superiors,  at  a time  when  Crown  Point  should  have  been 
in  his  possession,  and  the  garrison  at  Fort  Niagara  his  prisoners,  a shout  of 
exultation  because  of  his  victory,  saying:  “ In  spite  of  every  subterfuge,  the 
soldiers  are  at  last  billeted  upon  the  town.”  This  victory  cheered  the  hearts 
of  the  Lords  of  Trade,  who  now  believed  that  the  absolute  submission  of 
the  colonies  was  an  event  near  at  hand. 

Abercrombie  loitered  in  Albany,  waiting  for  the  arrival  of  Loudon,  when 
he  predicted  mighty  things  would  be  done.  He  would  go  neither  backward 
nor  forward,  but  wasted  strength  there  in  constructing  useless  fortifications, 
when  the  best  defence  for  that  city  would  have  been  the  security  of  the 
frontier  posts.  Meanwhile  the  brave  and  active  Colonel  John  Bradstreet 
arrived  from  Oswego  with  the  startling  news  that  the  French  and  Indians 
were  threatening  the  forts  there,  and  that  a strong  force  was  actually  moving 
at  the  foot  of  Lake  Ontario  for  the  capture  of  the  post.  But  Abercrombie 
was  unmoved,  and  the  ten  thousand  men,  chafing  with  impatience  and 
suffering  from  sickness,  were  kept  at  Albany. 

Bradstreet  had  gained  laurels  at  Louisburg  eleven  years  before,  and  had 
been  made  lieutenant-governor  of  St.  Johns,  Newfoundland.  Knowing  his 
worth,  Shirley  had  called  him  into  active  military  service,  and  sent  him  from 
Albany,  with  a competent  force,  to  provision  the  garrison  at  Oswego.  With 
two  hundred  provincial  troops  and  forty  companies  of  boatmen,  he  crossed 
the  country  by  way  of  the  Mohawk  River,  Wood  Creek,  Oneida  Lake  and 
the  Oswego  River,  and  placed  in  the  fort  at  Oswego  provisions  for  five 
thousand  troops  for  six  months.  He  was  accompanied  by  Captain  (afterward 
General)  Schuyler,  as  commissary. 

Bradstreet  had  observed  that  his  descent  of  the  Oswego  River  had  been 
watched  by  French  and  Indian  scouts.  He  had  gone  only  nine  miles  up 
that  stream  on  his  return,  when  he  was  attacked  by  a strong  party  of  French 
regulars,  Canadians  and  savages.  The  provincials  drove  some  of  them  from 
an  island  in  the  river,  and  there  Bradstreet  made  a defensive  stand.  One 
of  the  Canadians,  too  badly  wounded  to  fly  with  his  companions,  remained, 
and  a boatman  was  about  to  dispatch  him,  when  young  Schuyler  .saved  his 


556 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


bouk  hi. 


life.  Soon  afterward  Bradstreet  abandoned  the  island  and  drove  the  assail- 
ants back  into  the  forest.  Owing  to  accident,  there  was  only  one  bateau  left 
at  the  island  when  the  colonel  ordered  his  men  away.  It  was  hardly  suffi- 
cient to  carry  the  commander  and  the  little  party  with  him.  The  wounded 
Canadian  begged  to  be  taken  in,  but  he  was  refused.  “ Then  throw  me 
into  the  river,”  he  cried,  “ and  not  leave  me  here  to  perish  with  hunger  and 
thirst.”  The  heart  of  Captain  Schuyler  was  touched  by  the  poor  fellow’s 
appeal,  and  handing  his  weapons  and  coat  to  a companion-in-arms,  he  bore 
the  wounded  man  to  the  water,  swam  with  him  across  the  deep  channel,  and 
placed  him  in  the  hands  of  a surgeon.  The  soldier  survived ; and  nineteen 
years  afterward,  when  Schuyler,  at  the  head  of  the  northern  army  of  the 
Revolution,  sent  a proclamation  in  the  French  language  into  Canada  invit- 
ing the  inhabitants  to  join  the  patriots,  that  soldier,  living  near  Chambl^e, 
enlisted  under  the  banner  of  Ethan  Allen,  that  he  might  see  and  thank  the 
preserver  of  his  life.  He  went  to  Schuyler’s  tent,  on  the  Isle  aux  Noix,  and 
kissed  the  general’s  hand  in  token  of  his  gratitude. 

After  a sharp  fight  in  the  forest  near  the  Oswego  River,  Bradstreet  dis- 
persed his  motley  foe,  and  hastened  to  Albany  with  the  startling  news  Just 
mentioned.  Meanwhile  the  more  active  French  had  been  preparing  for  an 
attack  on  Oswego.  So  early  as  March,  three  hundred  Frenchmen,  led  by 
Indian  guides,  had  made  their  way  on  snow-shoes  along  the  bases  of  the 
Adirondack  Mountains,  on  the  north  and  west,  to  the  vicinity  of  Oneida 
Lake,  destroyed  a small  English  stockade  there,  called  Fort  Bull,  and 
returned  with  thirty  prisoners.  Late  in  May,  eight  hundred  men  under  De 
Villiers,  pushed  forward  to  Sandy  Creek,  at  the  eastern  end  of  Lake  Ontario, 
and  from  that  party  went  the  detachment  that  assailed  Bradstreet.  At 
about  the  same  time.  Field  Marshal  the  Marquis  de  Montcalm  arrived  at 
Quebec  as  governor-general  and  commander-in-chief.  He  was  small  in 
stature,  but  very  energetic  in  mind  and  body.  He  instantly  surveyed  the 
field  of  his  future  operations.  By  journeying  night  and  day,  he  penetrated 
to  Ticonderoga,  where  the  French  had  built  Fort  Carillon.  He  saw  the 
value  of  that  position,  as  well  as  Crown  Point,  and  hastening  back  to 
Quebec,  he  prepared  an  expedition,  secretly,  against  Oswego.  At  the  head 
of  three  regiments,  he  ascended  the  St.  Lawrence  to  Fort  Frontenac,  and 
was  joined  at  Montreal  by  a large  body  of  Canadians  and  savages.  With 
this  force,  about  five  thousand  in  number,  he  crossed  the  lake  in  bateaux 
and  canoes,  and  anchored  in  what  is  now  Sackett’s  Harbor,  early  in  August. 

Fort  Oswego,  on  the  west  side  of  the  river,  was  a strong  work.  Fort 
Ontario,  on  the  east  side,  was  weaker,  and  was  considered  an  outpost  to  the 
other.  Against  Ontario,  Montcalm  led  his  forces.  Behind  Four-Mile  Point, 


Chap.  XX. 


OSWEGO  CAPTURED  BY  THE  FRENCH. 


557 


a long  wooded  cape  eastward  of  Oswego,  he  landed  his  troops,  unobserved 
by  the  English  scouts,  and  was  in  full  march  through  the  woods  before  he 
was  discovered.  Colonel  Mercer,  the  commander  of  the  little  garrison  of 
one  thousand  men,  at  Ontario,  prepared  to  receive  the  foe,  who  invested  the 
fort  in  full  force,  with  thirty  pieces  of  cannon,  some  of  which  had  been  taken 
from  Braddock  the  year  before.  Finding  sharp  resistance,  Montcalm  began 
a regular  siege,  and  on  the  14th  of  August,  when  he  was  about  to  storm  the 
works.  Colonel  Mercer,  who  saw  that  further  resistance  would  be  useless, 
agreed  to  surrender  the  post  to  the  French.  One  hundred  and  twenty 
pieces  of  artillery,  six  vessels  of  war,  three  chests  of  coin  and  a large 
quantity  of  ammunition  and  stores,  were  the  spoils  of  victory.  To  allay  the 
jealousy  of  the  Six  Nations,  Montcalm  destroyed  both  forts;  and  the  priests 
who  accompanied  him  erected  a cross,  on  which  they  placed  the  words, 
“This  is  the  Banner  of  Victory.”  Close  by  it  they  raised  a wooden 
column,  on  which  was  placed  the  arms  of  France  and  the  inscription  : “ Bring 
Lilies  WITH  Full  H.\nds.”  Then  Montcalm  descended  the  St.  Lawrence, 
with  his  prisoners,  and  sent  the  captured  English  flags  to  decorate  the 
churches  of  Montreal  and  Quebec.  The  destruction  of  the  forts  at  Oswego 
was  an  admirable  stroke  of  policy  on  the  part  of  the  French  commander. 
It  pleased  the  savages,  and,  as  he  hoped,  caused  them  to  assume  a position 
of  neutrality  toward  the  belligerents.  French  emissaries  soon  seduced  the 
Oneidas,  Onondagas,  Cayugas  and  Senecas  from  the  British  interest. 

Loudon  arrived  just  in  time  to  hear  of  the  loss  of  Oswego,  as  the  first 
military  news  that  reached  him.  He  congratulated  the  country  because 
of  its  escape  from  greater  disasters.  “ If  the  attack  had  been  made  on  the 
provincials  alone,”  he  said,  “ it  would  have  been  followed  with  fatal  conse- 
quences.” He  would  not  allow  any  merit  in  the  character  of  a provincial 
soldier.  For  them  he  had  nothing  but  contemptuous  words.  Notwithstand- 
ing the  provincials  had  saved  the  remnant  of  Braddock’s  army,  in  spite  of 
the  cowardice  of  the  regulars  and  the  obstinacy  of  their  general ; had  con- 
quered Acadia;  defeated  Dieskau,  and  had  performed  nearly  all  of  the  really 
useful  military  service  against  the  French,  he  praised  the  British  regulars  and 
disparaged  the  Americans.  Pleading  the  danger  of  another  attack  from  the 
French,  in  greater  force,  as  an  excuse  for  his  imbecility,  he  left  the  enemy  to 
build  a stronger  work  at  Ticonderoga,  dismissed  the  provincials  to  their 
homes,  and  placed  the  regulars  in  winter-quarters. 

Under  his  instructions.  Lord  Loudon  demanded  of  the  city  of  New  York, 
free  quarters  for  himself,  his  officers,  and  a thousand  men.  “ Your  demand 
is  contrary  to  the  laws  of  England  and  the  liberties  of  America,”  said  the 
mayor  of  the  city.  “ Free  quarters  are  everywhere  usual;  I assert  it  on  my 


553 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book.  III. 


honor,  which  is  the  highest  evidence  you  can  requiic.,”  answered  the  haughty 
earl.  The  mayor  was  firm,  and  Loudon  determined  to  make  New  York  an 
example  for  the  rest  of  the  continent.  When  the  citizens,  by  the  lips  of  the 
mayor,  pleaded  their  rights  as  Englishmen,  his  lordship,  w'ith  a vulgar  oath, 
said  to  the  magistrate : “ If  you  don’t  billet  my  officers  upon  free  quarters, 
this  day.  I’ll  order  here  all  the  troops  under  my  command,  and  billet  them 


LORD  LOUDON. 


|M 

myself  upon  the  city.”  A subscription  for  the  purpose  was  raised,  the  officers 
were  billeted  on  the  city,  and  Loudon  won  his  first  victory.  A similar  con- 
test, with  a similar  result,  occurred  in  Philadelphia,  and  there  Loudon  won 
his  second  victory. 

In  the  meantime  the  provincials  had  won  a substantial  victory  on  the 


Chap.  XX. 


INDIANS  CHASTISED  AT  KITTANING. 


559 


Alleghany  River,  in  Pennsylvania.  We  have  observed  that  Dr.  Franklin 
had  superintended  the  construction  of  a chain  of  small  posts  along  the 
Pennsylvania  frontier,  from  the  Delaware  to  the  borders  of  Maryland,  as  a 
defence  against  hostile  Indians.  But  the  savages  continued  to  harass  the 
remote  settlements,  until,  on  the  borders  of  Pennsylvania  and  Virginia, 
almost  a thousand  white  persons  had  perished,  and  much  property  had  been 
plundered  or  destroyed.  Franklin  was  satisfied  that  he  was  not  in  his  right 
place,  and  abandoned  military  life  forever.  Colonel  John  Armstrong,  of 
Pennsylvania,  took  his  position,  and  with  three  hundred  men,  accompanied 
by  Captain  Mercer  of  Virginia,  he  proceeded,  in  the  night  of  the  7th  of 
September,  1756,  to  chastise  the  hostile  Delawares  at  Kittaning,  one  of  their 
principal  villages  (now  in  Armstrong  county),  within  thirty-five  miles  of  Fort 
Du  Quesne.  Stealthily,  Armstrong  and  his  followers  passed  the  Alleghany 
Mountains  and  took  post  not  far  from  Kittaning,  at  midnight,  when  the 
savages  were  sleeping  without  a dream  of  danger  near.  It  was  a warm 
night,  and  some  were  reposing  in  the  open  air  on  the  outskirts.  Upon  them 
the  provincials  came  at  dawn.  The  savages  sprang  to  their  feet,  gave  the 
war-whoop,  and  flew  to  the  village,  closely  pursued  by  the  provincials,  who 
killed  many  of  their  chiefs  and  utterly  destroyed  the  town.  Not  a vestige 
of  a dwelling  was  left.  The  chastisement  was  effectual.  It  inspired  the 
Delawares  with  such  fear  of  the  white  man,  that  they  were  completely 
humbled,  and  the  frontier  had  peace.  So  ended  the  campaign  of  1756. 
The  chief  results  of  that  campaign  were  a gain  of  strength  and  territory  by 
the  French  ; two  victories  in  battle  over  the  common  foe  by  the  provincials, 
and  the  bloodless  conquest  of  the  unarmed  English  cities  of  New  York  and 
Philadelphia  by  Lord  Loudon  and  his  British  regulars,  the  spoils  of  his 
victories  being  free  food  and  lodging  for  a few  months  and  the  contempt  of 
the  people.  Fifteen  hundred  volunteers  and  drafted  militia,  under  Colonel 
Washington,  were  placed  in  stockades  during  the  ensuing  winter,  for  the 
defence  of  the  frontiers  of  Pennsylvania  and  Virginia ; and  on  the  western 
borders  of  the  Carolinas,  several  military  posts  were  established  as  a protec- 
tion against  the  Cherokees  and  Creeks,  and  their  neighbors,  among  whom 
French  emissaries  were  at  work. 


CHAPTER  XXI. 


CHARACTER  OF  LORD  LOUDON — THE  CONDITION  OF  ENGLAND — PITT  CALLED  TO  THE  CABINET — 
HIS  DISMISSAL  FROM  IT — PLAN  OF  THE  CAMPAIGN  OF  1757 — EXPEDITION  AGAINST  LOUISBURG 
A FAILURE — IMBECILITY  OF  LORD  LOUDON — DISGUST  OF  THE  INDIANS — THEIR  ALLIANCE 
WITH  THE  FRENCH — MONTCALM  ON  LAKE  CHAMPLAIN — STARK’S  EXPLOITS — FORT  WILLIAM 
HENRY  THREATENED — CAPTURE  OF  FORT  WILLIAM  HENRY  BY  THE  FRENCH — A MASSACRE — 
COWARDICE  OF  GENERAL  WEBB — PUBLIC  DISCONTENT  IN  ENGLAND — PITT  RECALLED  TO  THE 
CABINET — HIS  POLICY  AND  ITS  EFFECTS — PREPARATIONS  FOR  THE  CAMPAIGN  OF  1 758. 

NO  better  instrument  could  have  been  selected  by  the  British  govern- 
ment to  render  that  government  odious  to  the  colonists  than  the 
Earl  of  Loudon.  He  was  devoid  of  genius  either  civil  or  military. 
Imperious  and  undignified  in  his  deportment;  quick  to  threaten  but  slow  to 
execute;  possessing  no  semblance  of  public  virtue;  unsympathetic  with  any- 
thing noble  or  generous  in  human  character;  always  in  a hurry  and  hurry- 
ing others,  but  excessively  dilator}’'  in  the  performance  of  duties,  he  excited 
the  disgust,  jealousy,  dislike  and  contempt  of  the  colonists.  He  could  not 
understand  how  a public  officer  could  be  unselfish  and  honest.  When  Dr. 
Franklin  urged  him  to  reimburse  money  which  the  latter  had  spent  for 
the  public  service,  the  earl  told  him  he  could  afford  to  wait,  as  he  had  doubt- 
less taken  care  to  fill  his  own  pockets  in  his  public  transactions.  When 
Franklin  repelled  the  insinuation  by  declaring  his  integrity,  the  corrupt  earl 
spoke  of  it  as  a thing  incredible.  “ I wonder  much,”  wrote  Franklin, 
“ how  such  a man  came  to  be  intrusted  with  so  important  a business  as  the 
conduct  of  a great  doing ; but  having  since  seen  more  of  the  great  world, 
and  the  means  of  obtaining  and  motives  for  giving  places  and  employments, 
my  wonder  is  diminished.”  Referring  to  Loudon’s  hurry  and  tardiness,  a 
person  said  to  Franklin  : ” He  is  like  St.  George  on  a sign-post ; always  on 
horseback,  but  never  goes  forward.” 

Events  equally  disgraceful  in  England  and  America  occurred  during  the 
year  1756.  Quarrels,  scandals,  intrigues,  corruptions  and  imbecility  had 
marked  the  court  and  administration  of  the  British  monarch.  The  king’s 
mistress  governed  the  realm.  Patriots  trembled  for  the  fate  of  their  country. 
Satire  and  caricature  assailed  its  governing  ministers;  and  Hogarth  arose  in 


Chap.  XXL 


PITT  AND  THE  ARISTOCRACY. 


561 


reputation.  The  only  hope  for  the  future  of  England,  in  the  minds  of  think- 
ing men,  was  given  late  in  the  year,  by  raising  William  Pitt,  the  great 
Commoner,  to  the  dignity  of  Secretary  of  State.  The  English  people  were 
with  the  untitled  minister ; the  English  aristocracy  were  against  him.  The 
latter,  in  power,  stood  in  the  way  of  every  wise  and  generous  plan  of  Pitt. 
When  he  proposed  to  pursue  a just  and  liberal  course  toward  the  American 
colonies,  he  was  met  by  churlish  cavils  from  the  Lords  of  Trade,  and  demands 
for  the  taxation  of  the  Americans.  When  he  was  pressed  to  recommend  a 
stamp-tax  for  America,  he  replied:  “With  the  enemy  at  their  back,  and 
British  bayonets  at  their  breasts,  in  the  day  of  their  distress,  perhaps  the 
Americans  may  submit  to  the  imposition.”  Pitt  understood  the  Americans 
better,  and  had  a clearer  conception  of  justice  and  its  wise  policy,  than  any 
public  man  in  England.  He  would  not  yield  his  country  to  the  persuasion 
nor  threats  of  the  aristocracy ; he  would  not  resign  the  office  which  he  knew 
the  English  people  desired  him  to  fill;  and  in  the  spring  of  1757,  he  was 
dismissed  by  the  king,  with  other  good  members  of  the  cabinet.  The 
government  of  England  was  in  a state  of  anarchy  for  several  weeks,  and 
Loudon  was  making  infinite  mischief  in  America. 

In  January,  1757,  Loudon  held  a council  in  Boston.  The  governors  of 
Nova  Scotia  and  New  England  were  there.  The  earl’s  behavior  was  that 
of  an  autocrat.  His  opinions,  dogmatically  expressed,  swayed  the  council 
and  determined  its  decisions.  Better  men  acquiesced  in  his  plans  in  viola- 
tion of  their  wiser  convictions,  because  they  feared  less  injury  from  his 
imbecility  than  from  his  uncontrolled  resentment.  It  was  decided  to  confine 
the  military  operations  of  the  campaign  to  the  capture  of  Louisburg;  an 
object  of  far  less  importance  to  Great  Britain  and  her  colonies  at  that  time, 
than  the  expulsion  of  the  French  from  the  frontier  posts  and  from  Montreal 
and  Quebec.  The  New  England  people  were  disappointed  and  alarmed, 
New  Yorkers  were  amazed.  Pennsylvanians  and  Virginians  were  distressed 
because  of  the  exposed  condition  of  their  frontier  settlers  to  the  sanguinary 
visits  of  the  savages  and  their  allies.  Yet  the  colonists  responded  generously 
to  calls  for  men  and  supplies,  and  at  the  first  of  June,  1757,  Loudon  found 
himself  at  the  head  of  an  army  of  provincials  who,  alone,  were  competent, 
under  a good  commander,  to  crush  French  dominion  in  America. 

The  earl  resolved  to  lead  the  expedition  against  Louisburg  in  person. 
H is  officers  easily  foretold  the  result.  Before  his  departure  he  made  precau- 
tionary provisions.  He  ordered  Colonel  Bouquet  to  watch  the  Carolina 
frontiers  with  a few  troops.  General  Stanwix  was  ordered  to  guard  the 
western  frontiers  with  two  thousand  men  ; and  General  Webb  was  sent  with 
six  thousand  troops  to  defend  Forts  Edward  and  William  Henry.  Washing- 


562 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  III. 


ton  spent  the  summer  with  a few  Virginia  troops,  in  skirmishing  with  Indians 
and  building  a fort  at  Winchester,  his  headquarters. 

The  earl  was  ready  for  his  eastern  campaign  late  in  June.  Having 
exasperated  the  people  of  the  whole  country  by  impressing  into  the  British 
service,  at  New  York,  four  hundred  men,  he  sailed  from  that  port  with  a 
considerable  force,  and  arrived  at  Halifax  on  the  30th  of  the  month.  There 
he  was  joined  by  ships  under  Admiral  Holborne  and  six  thousand  troops 
commanded  by  George  Viscount  Howe.  On  the  9th  of  July  he  assembled 
his  whole  armament,  composed  of  ten  thousand  soldiers,  sixteen  ships  of 

the  line,  and  sev'eral  frigates  and 
transports.  It  was  supposed  that 
an  immediate  attack  upon  Louis- 
burg  was  intended,  but  the  hope 
was  delusive.  The  troops  were 
landed.  They  were  made  to 
level  the  unev'en  ground  for  a 
parade ; and  for  almost  a month 
they  were  employed  in  the  culti- 
vation of  a vegetable  garden  and 
exercises  in  sham  fights  and 
sieges.  The  army  was  dispirited, 
and  the  patience  of  the  officers 
was  exhausted.  Major-General 
Lord  Charles  Hay  could  no 
longer  repress  expressions  of  his 
indignation.  One  day  while  he 
was  sitting  under  a tree  near  the 
seashore,  discussing  army  matters 
with  some  fellow-officers,  he 
sprang  to  his  feet,  and  blazing 
with  indignation,  he  said,  as  he 
pointed  toward  a noble  ship  lying 

LORD  CHARLES  HAY  INDIGNANT. 

near,  and  to  the  idle  camp  not 
far  off,  “ See  how  the  power  of 
England  is  held  in  chains  by  imbecility ! Her  substance  is  wasted  by  inde- 
cision ! With  such  ships  and  such  men  as  we  have  here,  led  by  an  energetic 
and  competent  commander.  Cape  Breton  and  its  fortress,  and  all  this  eastern 
region,  might  have  been  a part  of  the  British  empire  a month  ago.”  For 
these  brave  words,  his  lordship  was  arrested,  sent  to  England  and  tried  by 
court-martial,  and  was  acquitted.  At  that  trial,  there  was  a tragical  event. 


THE  FRENCH  AND  THEIR  ALLIES. 


Chap.  XXL 


563 


The  President  of  the  Board,  while  putting  a question  to  Lord  Hay,  fell 
from  his  seat  in  an  apoplectic  fit,  and  died. 

Stung  by  Lord  Hay’s  remarks,  Loudon  bustled  about  a few  days  and 
embarked  his  troops  as  if  for  Louisburg.  During  the  delay  at  Halifax,  that 
fortress  had  been  reinforced,  and  ships  had  been  added  to  the  P'rench  fleet 
there.  A reconnoitering  vessel  brought  word  to  the  earl  that  his  enemy  had 
one  more  ship  than  he  ; so  his  lordship  abandoned  the  expedition  and  sailed 
for  New  York.  The  army  was  amazed  and  thoroughly  disgusted.  On  the 
loth  of  August,  when  the  fleet  had  voyaged  westward  only  two  days,  an 
express  sloop  was  met.  A messenger  from  her  came  in  haste  to  Lord 
Loudon  with  a despatch,  telling  him  that  the  French,  in  large  numbers,  had 
closely  invested  Fort  William  Henry,  on  Lake  George.  The  earl  imme- 
diately sent  orders  back  for  troops  that  he  had  left  behind,  to  follow  him  to 
New  York.  When  he  arrived  there  at  near  the  close  of  August,  he  was  met 
with  the  news  that  the  French  were  in  possession  of  Fort  William  Henry 
and  all  northern  New  York.  The  province  was  trembling  with  alarm.  That 
alarm  was  intensified  fourfold  when  the  stupid  and  stubborn  earl  pro- 
posed to  encamp  his  forces  on  Long  Island  for  the  defence  of  the  con- 
tinent ! 

For  more  than  a year  the  English  in  America  had  acted  so  much  “like 
women  ” that  the  Indians  were  disgusted.  They  admired  the  different 
spirit  of  the  French,  and  warriors  from  more  than  thirty  “ nations”  were  at 
Montreal  at  the  beginning  of  the  summer  of  1757.  Governor  Vaudreuil  told 
them  of  glory  and  plunder  surely  to  be  won  by  alliance  with  the  French. 
Montcalm  danced  their  wild  war-dances  with  them ; he  sung  their  fierce  war- 
songs  with  them,  until  their  affection  for  him  and  enthusiasm  for  the  cause 
of  the  French  became  intense,  and  they  were  ready  to  follow  wherever  that 
general  might  lead.  He  commanded  them  to  meet  his  regulars  and  Cana- 
dians at  St.  Johns  on  the  Sorel,  for  a voyage  over  the  Lake.  They  went,  in 
a wild,  tumultuous  march  for  Montreal,  accompanied  by  priests  who  chanted 
hymns  and  anthems  in  almost  every  Indian  dialect.  In  canoes  and  bateaux 
the  motley  army,  led  by  Montcalm,  went  up  Lake  Champlain  and  landed  at 
Ticonderoga.  It  was  hot  July.  Under  a wide-spreading  oak  high  mass 
was  celebrated,  and  voices  chanting  sacred  hymns  were  mingled  with  the 
martial  music  of  French  instruments.  Scouts  were  sent  out  and  returned 
with  prisoners  and  scalps.  When  Marin,  who  had  destroyed  the  hamlet  of 
Saratoga  a dozen  years  before,  came  back  from  the  hills  near  Fort  Edward, 
and  pointed  to  his  canoe  moored  at  the  shore,  in  which  lay  a solitary  prisoner 
and  more  than  forty  scalps,  the  savages  set  up  a yell  of  exultation  that 
awakened  the  echoes  of  Mount  Defiance  and  Mount  Independence,  then 


564 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  III. 


bearing  Algonquin  names.  Very  soon  the  whole  body  of  Montcalm’s  force 
moved  to  the  foot  of  Lake  George,  for  their  destination  was  Fort  William 
Henry,  at  the  head  of  the  Lake.  “ His  sailing,”  wrote  Malartie  from  Mon- 
treal, when  Loudon  departed  for  Halifax,  “ is  a hint  for  us  to  project  some- 
thing on  this  frontier.”  The  expedition  against  Fort  William  Henry  was 
the  result  of  that  hint. 

During  the  previous  winter,  the  Rangers  commanded  by  Major  Rogers, 
at  Fort  William  Henry,  had  not  been  idle.  The  active  and  intrepid  Lieu- 
tenant Stark  (afterward  the  hero  of  Bennington),  who  commanded  the 
Rangers  when  Rogers  was  absent,  was  frequently  out,  at  the  head  of  scouts, 
watching  the  foe  and  striking  them  a blow  now  and  then  near  Fort  Carillon 


FRENCHMEN  ATTACKED  DY  STARK. 


— a name  suggested  to  the  French  by  the  rushing  waters  of  the  outlet  of 
Lake  George,  and  which  also  suggested  to  the  Indians  their  name  of  Chc-on- 
de-ro-ga — “ Sounding  Waters  ” — the  origin  of  Ticonderoga.  These  Rangers 
glided  over  the  frozen  waters  on  .skates,  or  traversed  the  pathless  forests  on 
snow-shoes.  On  one  occasion  a party  of  Frenchmen  were  traveling  merrily 
on  the  lake  between  Ticonderoga  and  Crown  Point,  on  rude  sledges  drawn 
by  Canadian  ponies,  when  Stark  and  his  followers  rushed  from  the  woods, 
and  made  some  of  them  prisoners.  Others  were  borne  beyond  danger  by 
the  frightened  ponies,  which  fled  over  the  ice  with  the  fleetness  of  the  wind. 
As  Stark  touched  the  shore  with  his  prisoners,  he  was  assailed  by  a large 
body  of  Indians  in  the  edge  of  the  woods.  An  unequal  fight  was  kept  up 


Chap.  XXL  FORT  WILLIAM  HENRY  MENACED.  565 

until  dark,  when  Stark,  leaving  twenty  of  his  men  behind — killed,  wounded, 
and  missing — made  his  way  back  to  the  fort. 

Meanwhile,  fifteen  hundred  French  regulars  and  Canadians  followed  the 
younger  Vaudreuil  from  the  St.  Lawrence  to  Lake  George,  to  capture  Fort 
William  Henry  by  surprise.  They  traveled  on  snow-shoes ; their  provisions 
were  carried  on  small  sledges  drawn  by  dogs,  and  their  beds  were  bear-skins 
spread  upon  the  snow.  Stealthily  they  went  over  the  frozen  lake,  and 
appeared  before  the  fort  at  midnight.  The  garrison  were  on  the  alert.  The 
invaders  set  on  fire  the  vessels  there  frozen  in  the  ice,  the  store-houses  and 
some  huts,  and  escaped  by  the  light  of  the  conflagration.  That  was  the 
night  succeeding  St.  Patrick’s  day,  in  March,  1757.  From  that  time  until 
early  in  August,  the  garrison  suffered  very  little  molestation. 

At  the  close  of  July,  the  garrison  at  Fort  William  Henry  was  composed 
of  less  than  five  hundred  men  under  the  brave  Colonel  Monro.  A short 
distance  from  the  fort,  on  a gentle  rocky  eminence,  where  may  now  be  seen 
the  ruins  of  the  citadel  of  Fort  George,  seventeen  hundred  men  lay  in- 
trenched. 

A little  more  than  a dozen  miles  distant  was  Fort  Edward,  where  lay  the 
timid  General  Webb,  with  about  four  thousand  troops.  At  the  same  time 
Montcalm  was  at  the  foot  of  Lake  George  with  six  thousand  French  and 
Canadians,  and  about  seventeen  hundred  Indians.  There  he  held  a grand 
council,  and  then  he  moved  over  the  waters  and  along  the  western  shore  of 
Lake  George.  In  a skirmish  on  the  Lake,  a great  Indian  warrior  had  been 
killed,  and  his  body  borne  away  by  his  comrades.  Funeral  honors  were 
paid  to  it.  It  was  dressed  in  full  war-costume,  and  painted  as  if  for  the  war- 
path. Brilliant  ribbons,  and  glittering  belts  in  w'hich  were  his  tomahawk  and 
scalping-knife,  and  earrings  and  nose-jewels,  adorned  the  dead  body,  which 
was  placed  upright  on  the  green  sward.  In  his  hand  was  a lance ; at  his  lips 
was  a pipe,  and  by  his  side  a filled  bowl.  In  this  presence  there  was  an 
oration  ; then  followed  the  death-dance  and  the  death-song,  accompanied 
by  the  low  music  of  a softly-beaten  drum  and  the  tinkling  of  little  bells. 
Then  the  body  was  placed  in  a grave,  in  a sitting  posture,  with  plenty  of 
food,  and  covered  with  earth  ; and  the  spirit  of  the  warrior  was  dismissed 
to  the  happy  hunting-grounds  beyond  the  setting  sun. 

On  the  2d  of  August,  Montcalm,  who  had  passed  up  the  Lake  with  the 
main  army,  on  bateaux,  landed,  with  a heavy  train  of  artillery,  not  far  from 
the  site  of  the  village  of  Caldwell,  and  at  once  constructed  siege  batteries. 
La  Come,  with  Canadians,  had  landed  on  the  east  side  of  the  Lake,  and 
taken  position  across  the  road  leading  to  Fort  Edward;  and  De  Levi,  with 
French  and  Canadians,  formed  a camp  northwest  of  La  Come. 


566 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  III. 


Thi.s  sudden  appearance  of  so  large  a force  was  a surprise  to  the  com- 
mander of  the  garrison.  General  Webb  had  come  up  from  Fort  Edward  a 
day  or  two  before,  under  an  escort  of  Rangers  led  by  Major  Israel  Putnam. 
He  examined  the  fort  and  the  intrenched  camp,  and  sent  Putnam  on  a 
scout  down  the  Lake,  who  discovered  a large  force  of  I'rench  and  Indians. 
This  fact  Webb  concealed  from  Colonel  Monro,  and  immediately  returned 
to  Fort  Edward,  with  the  same  scout.  Not  doubting  the  intention  of  his 
superior  to  give  him  all  the  aid  in  his  power,  the  veteran,  when,  on  the  4th 
of  August,  Montcalm  demanded  an  instant  surrender  of  the  fort,  refused 
compliance  in  a defiant  tone.  The  siege  was  then  prosecuted  with  vigor, 
but  Monro  held  out,  in  continual  expectation  of  aid  from  General  Webb. 
Express  after  express  was  sent  through  by-ways  to  I"ort  Edward,  imploring 
aid ; but  Webb,  fearing  an  attack  upon  that  post,  would  not  spare  a man. 
Finally,  when  Sir  William  Johnson  was  allowed  to  march  with  Putnam  and 
his  Rangers  and  some  provincials  to  the  relief  of  Monro,  the  whole  force 
was  recalled  when  within  three  miles  of  Fort  William  Henry.  Instead  of 
forwarding  relief  to  the  beleaguered  garrison,  Webb  sent  a letter  to  their 
commander,  in  which  he  gave  an  exaggerated  estimate  of  the  numbers  of 
the  French  and  Indians,  and  advised  him  to  surrender  to  prevent  the  mas- 
sacre of  his  whole  force. 

This  letter  was  intercepted  by  Montcalm,  at  a moment  when  he  was 
about  to  abandon  the  siege  and  return  to  Ticonderoga,  for  his  ammunition 
and  provisions  had  become  almost  exhausted  during  a siege  of  several  days. 
He  sent  the  letter  in  to  Monro,  with  a summons  for  him  to  surrender.  That 
commander  perceived  the  hopelessness  of  his  situation.  His  own  means  for 
defence  were  almost  exhausted,  and  he  could  not  expect  aid  from  Fort 
Edward.  He  yielded  reluctantly,  after  honorable  terms  had  been  agreed 
upon.  The  garrison  were  to  march  out  with  the  honors  of  war,  carrying 
with  them  their  baggage  and  small  arms,  and  one  cannon  in  recognition  of 
their  gallant  defence  of  the  fort,  Monro  agreeing  that  his  men  should  not 
bear  arms  against  the  French  for  the  space  of  eighteen  months;  also  to 
deliver  at  Ticonderoga,  all  the  French  and  Indian  prisoners  in  the  hands  of 
the  English.  Montcalm  pledged  himself  to  furnish  them  with  a strong 
escort  half-way  to  Fort  Edward.  All  this  had  been  arranged  at  a council  in 
which  the  Indians  were  represented.  On  the  9th  of  August,  the  French 
entered  the  fort  and  the  English  left  it. 

It  was  now  near  evening.  Montcalm  had  kept  intoxicating  liquors  from 
the  savages,  and  admonished  the  English  to  do  likewise.  They  did  not 
heed  the  admonition,  but  supplied  the  Indians  with  rum.  After  a night’s 
carousal,  the  savages  were  ready  for  any  mischief.  At  daybreak  they  gathered 


MONTCALM  TRYING  TO  STOP  THE  MASSACRE. 


Chap.  XXL 


FEROCITY  OF  THE  SAVAGES. 


567 


around  the  English  camp  with  hostile  menaces.  When  the  garrison 
began  their  march  toward  Fort  Edward,  the  infuriated  Indians  fell  upon 
them,  plundered  nearly  all  of  them,  murdered  a large  number  of  the 
soldiers  and  women,  and  made  many  prisoners.  Montcalm  and  his  officers 
did  all  in  their  power  to  arrest  the  fury  of  the  savages.  He  and  De  Levi 
rushed  in  between  them  and  their  victims,  at  the  peril  of  their  own  lives, 
and  finally  stayed  the  massacre.  The  survivors  were  sent  to  Fort  Edward 
under  a strong  escort,  and  the  prisoners  were  afterward  ransomed  in  Canada. 


MASSACRE  AT  FORT  WILLIAM  HENRY. 


The  fort  and  all  of  its  appendages  were  immediately  destroyed  by  fire  and 
pick,  and  its  conquerors  moved  down  the  Lake  the  same  day.  Putnam,  who 
visited  the  ruins  as  soon  as  the  French  had  left,  described  the  scene  as 
appalling.  He  saw  the  bodies  of  murdered  Englishmen  scattered  in  every 
direction,  many  of  them  half-consumed  among  the  dying  embers.  He 
counted  the  bodies  of  more  than  one  hundred  women  shockingly  mangled, 
and  some  of  them  scalped.  The  fort  was  never  rebuilt.  An  irregular  line 
of  low  mounds — the  remains  of  Fort  William  Henry — might  have  been  seen 
37 


568 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  III. 


on  the  borders  of  the  Lake  until  1854,  when  the  site  was  covered  by  a large 
summer-hotel,  already  mentioned. 

General  Webb,  at  Fort  Edward,  with  almost  six  thousand  men,  expect- 
ing to  be  attacked  at  any  moment,  sent  off  his  private  baggage  to  a place  of 
safety,  preparatory  to  a retreat  to  the  Hudson  Highlands.  But  his  dreaded 
foe,  having  accomplished  the  chief  object  of  his  expedition,  returned  to  Lake 
Champlain  to  rest  upon  his  laurels.  So  ended  Loudon’s  campaign  in  1757. 
It  was  more  inglorious  than  that  of  the  preceding  year.  The  British  aris- 
tocracy had  weakened  British  power ; and  their  representative  in  America 
had  disgraced  the  British  arms.  The  English  had  been  expelled  from  the 
Ohio  basin  ; they  had  been  made  powerless  in  northern  New  York,  and 
contemptible  in  Nova  Scotia;  and  the  French  bore  undisputed  sway  over 
the  St.  Lawrence  and  the  Great  Lakes,  and  the  Valley  of  the  Mississippi. 
At  that  moment,  French  territory  in  America  exceeded  that  of  English  full 
twenty-fold.  The  colonists  were  humiliated  and  exasperated.  But  they 
were  learning,  in  a degree,  the  measure  of  their  strength  in  union.  It  was  a 
lesson  of  vast  importance  to  them  in  their  impending  struggle  with  a power 
that  sought  to  enslave  them. 

The  position  of  American  affairs  alarmed  the  English  people.  “ We  are 
undone  at  home  with  increased  expenses  ; abroad,  by  ill-luck  and  incapacity,” 
exclaimed  Chesterfield,  one  of  the  most  enlightened  of  the  English  aris- 
tocracy. He  uttered  the  opinions  of  the  British  nation  outside  of  that 
aristocracy,  and  their  rulers  were  soon  compelled  to  listen.  Light  concern- 
ing the  Americans  was  spreading  over  England.  Thinking  men  saw  justice 
in  their  demands  for  local  self-government,  and  reason  for  their  restiveness 
and  irritation  because  they  were  continually  plagued  by  the  rapacity  and 
haughty  bearing  of  many  of  the  royal  governors  and  the  unjust  exactions 
of  the  British  ministry.  They  saw  the  danger  of  the  Americans  being 
driven  to  the  renunciation  of  their  allegiance  to  Great  Britain,  if  a more 
just  policy  toward  them  should  not  be  speedily  exercised  ; and  the  English 
people  became  so  clamorous  for  a change  in  the  administration,  that  the 
alarmed  king,  after  suffering  England  to  be  eleven  weeks  without  a ministry, 
was  compelled  to  recall  Pitt  to  the  cabinet  in  June,  1757,  invested  with 
powers  which  made  him,  in  fact,  prime  minister  of  the  realm.  To  him  was 
intrusted  the  supreme  direction  of  military  and  foreign  affairs.  He  wielded 
his  power  with  wisdom,  and  won  glory  for  his  country. 

While  Loudon  was  trying  his  best  to  conquer  the  Americans  by  over- 
awing their  assemblies  and  bringing  the  people  into  submission  to  the  royal 
will,  Pitt  was  devising  plans  for  conciliating  them  by  just  and  generous  treat- 
ment. When,  late  in  the  year,  Bostonians  refused  to  submit  to  the  billeting 


Chap.  XXL 


A GENEROUS  POLICY. 


569 


of  royal  soldiers  upon  them,  the  imperious  earl  sent  a manifesto  to  the 
authorities  of  that  city,  saying : “ I have  ordered  the  messenger  to  wait  but 
forty-eight  hours  in  Boston ; and  if,  on  his  return,  I find  things  not  settled, 
I will  instantly  order  into  Boston  the  three  regiments  from  New  York,  Long 
Island  and  Connecticut;  and  if  more  are  wanted,  I have  two  in  the  Jerseys 
at  hand,  besides  three  in  Pennsylvania.”  When  that  message  was  on  its 
way  to  the  New  England  capital,  another  from  Pitt  was  crossing  the  Atlantic 
for  the  recall  of  Loudon,  for  the  minister  could  “ never  hear  from  him,  and 
did  not  know  what  he  was  about.”  So  the  Americans  were  relieved. 

“ Give  me  your  confidence,”  Pitt  said  to  the  king,  “ and  I will  deserve  it.” 
The  monarch  replied : “ Deserve  any  confidence  and  you  shall  have  it.” 
Upon  this  foundation  Pitt  began  his  brilliant  administration,  in  the  summer 
of  1757.  American  affairs  demanded  and  received  his  early  attention. 
General  Abercrombie  was  appointed  the  successor  of  Loudon  in  chief  military 
command  in  America.  Relying  upon  the  cheerful  patriotism  of  the  colonists 
Pitt  invited  them  to  raise  as  many  men  as  possible  for  an  expedition  against 
Montreal  and  Quebec.  He  assured  them  that  England  would  provide  arms, 
ammunition  and  tents,  and  that  nothing  would  be  required  of  them  but  the 
levying,  clothing  and  pay  of  the  men,  for  which  expenditures  the  king  would 
recommend  parliament  to  grant  a proper  reimbursement.  By  order  of  the 
king-,  he  sent  instructions  for  all  provincial  officers  no  higher  than  a colonel 
to  have  equal  command  with  officers  of  the  same  rank  commissioned  by  the 
crown,  according  to  the  date  of  their  respective  commissions.  These  were 
cheering  omens  for  the  Americans,  and  they  prepared  for  the  campaign  of 
1758  with  alacrity.  In  these  liberal  schemes  Pitt  was  opposed  by  the  aris- 
tocracy, because  they  yielded  to  the  notions  of  independence  cherished  by 
the  Americans,  and  the  law-lords  opposed  the  concessions  as  being  contrary 
to  the  spirit  of  the  British  constitution.  The  great  Commoner  met  their 
decisions  with  this  telling  maxim  : “ The  lawyers  are  not  to  be  regarded  in 
questions  of  liberty.” 

Preparations  for  the  campaign  of  1758  were  pressed  with  vigor.  A strong 
naval  armament  was  placed  under  the  command  of  Admiral  Boscawen,  and 
twelve  thousand  additional  English  troops  were  allotted  to  the  service  of 
America.  Equal  vigor  and  more  enthusiasm  was  observed  in  the  colonies. 
Pitt  asked  for  twenty  thousand  provincial  troops.  An  excess  of  levies  soon 
appeared.  New  England,  alone,  raised  fifteen  thousand.  In  Massachusetts 
the  zeal  of  the  people  was  unbounded,  and  the  sacrifice  of  personal  interest 
for  the  public  good  was  marvellous.  Public  and  private  advances  in  that 
colony  amounted  to  more  than  a million  dollars,  during  the  year  1758.  In 
order  to  raise  money,  enormous  taxes  were  levied  and  cheerfully  paid.  In 


570 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  III. 


many  instances  the  tax  was  equal  to  two-thirds  of  the  income  of  the  tax- 
payer. It  was  levied  by  their  own  choseti  representatives,  and  the  people  were 
content. 

New  York  furnished  twenty-seven  hundred  men;  New  Jersey,  one  thou- 
sand ; Pennsylvania,  three  thousand,  and  Virginia,  two  thousand.  Some 
came  from  the  more  southern  provinces ; but  to  the  people  of  that  region 
was  intrusted  the  defence  of  their  frontiers,  and,  if  opportunity  should  offer, 
the  expulsion  of  the  French  from  Louisiana.  When  Abercrombie  took 
command  of  the  army  in  May,  1758,  he  found  fifty  thousand  men  at  his 
disposal — a number  about  equal  to  the  entire  masculine  French  population 
in  America  at  that  time. 

The  plan  of  the  campaign  was  a renewal  of  that  of  General  Shirley  for 
1756,  spoiled  by  Loudon.  It  included  expeditions  against  Louisburg,  Fort 
Du  Quesne,  the  strong  posts  on  Lake  Champlain,  and  Montreal  and  Quebec. 
To  Sir  Jeffery  Amherst,  a veteran  soldier  then  about  forty  years  of  age,  with 
the  accomplished  James  Wolfe,  ten  years  his  junior,  as  his  lieutenant,  was 
intrusted  the  leadership  of  the  expedition  against  Louisburg,  in  connection 
with  Boscawen’s  fleet.  General  Joseph  Forbes  was  placed  in  command  of 
the  troops  that  were  to  attempt  the  conquest  of  Fort  Du  Quesne  and  the 
Ohio  Valley;  and  General  Abercrombie,  with  young  Lord  Howe  as  his 
lieutenant,  was  directed  to  sweep  the  French  from  Lake  Champlain,  and 
attempt  to  expel  them  from  Montreal  and  Quebec.  To  Wolfe  and  Howe 
Pitt  looked  for  success,  more  than  to  Abercrombie  and  Amherst.  They  were 
both  young  men;  experienced  in  military  life;  judicious,  magnetic,  and  full 
of  energy. 


CHAPTER  XXII. 


THE  SIEGE  AND  CAPTURE  OF  LOUISBURG — EXPEDITION  AGAINST  TICONDEROGA — CAPTURE  OF  FORT 
FRONTENAC — ACTIVITY  OF  THE  FRENCH— ADVENTURES  OF  PUTNAM — EXPEDITION  AGAINST 
FORT  DU  QUESNE — WASHINGTON’S  DEEDS  AND  MARRIAGE — PLAN  OF  THE  CAMPAIGN  OF  1759 
— WISDOM  OF  PITT — THE  FRENCH  IN  CANADA — EXPEDITION  AGAINST  CROWN  POINT — EXPE- 
DITION AGAINST  FORT  NIAGARA — EXPEDITION  AGAINST  QUEBEC — ARRIVAL  OF  THE  ENGLISH 
THERE,  AND  THEIR  OPERATIONS. 

The  campaign  of  1758  opened  with  the  siege  of  Louisburg.  Ad- 
miral Boscawen  arrived  at  Halifax  early  in  May,  with  a fleet  of 
almost  forty  vessels,  bearing  an  army  of  ten  thousand  effective  men 
led  by  Sir  Jeffery  Amherst,  with  General  James  Wolfe  as  his  chief  lieutenant. 
At  near  the  close  of  May  the  whole  armament  left  Halifax  for  Cape  Breton, 
and  landed  on  the  shores  of  Gabarus  Bay,  not  far  from  Louisburg,  on  the 
8th  of  June.  The  surf  was  running  high  and  breaking  in  foam  on  the  rugged 
shore.  Wolfe,  at  the  head  of  the  first  division,  ventured  among  the  tur- 
bulent waters  before  the  dawn.  Several  of  his  launches  bearing  troops  were 
upset  or  shattered.  When  he  reached  shoal  water,  the  impatient  young 
general  leaped  into  the  sea  waist-deep,  drew  his  sword,  and  in  the  morning 
twilight  led  his  soldiers  against  breastworks  and  abatis  in  the  face  of  a sharp 
fire  from  batteries.  The  French  were  driven  from  their  outworks  into  the 
fort,  and  the  siege  immediately  began.  It  lasted  almost  fifty  days. 

The  garrison  at  Louisburg  was  composed  of  twenty-five  hundred  regulars 
and  six  hundred  militia,  under  the  command  of  Chevalier  de  Drucourt.  In 
the  harbor  were  several  ships  of  the  line  and  some  frigates ; and  vessels  were 
sunk  at  the  entrance  of  the  harbor  to  prevent  the  ingress  of  an  enemy. 
Wolfe  was  the  soul  of  the  expedition.  Four  days  after  the  landing,  he  led 
some  infantry  and  Highlanders  to  the  capture  of  a battery  on  the  northeast 
side  of  the  harbor ; and  smaller  works  were  soon  secured.  The  English 
cannon  were  placed  in  battery  and  soon  began  to  play  upon  other  outworks, 
the  fort,  the  town,  and  the  vessels  in  the  harbor.  Four  of  the  latter  were 
burned  and  one  was  carried  off  by  the  English,  late  in  July.  The  town  of 
Louisburg  was  then  reduced  to  a ruin.  Almost  all  of  the  cannon  of  the  fort 
had  been  dismantled  by  English  shot  and  shell ; and  the  French  were  com- 
pelled to  capitulate  on  the  26th  of  the  month.  The  next  day  the  English 


572 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  III. 


took  possession  of  the  fort  and  town,  with  the  islands  of  Cape  Breton  and 
Prince  Edward  ; and  all  the  coast  nearly  to  the  mouth  of  the  St.  Lawrence 
passed  into  the  possession  of  Great  Britain.  The  spoils  of  victory  were 
about  five  thousand  prisoners  and  a large  quantity  of  munitions  of  war. 
After  that  victory,  the  French  power  in  America  began  to  wane.  The 
attempt  to  capture  Quebec  was  deferred  until  another  year,  and  Wolfe 
returned  home  and  received  the  plaudits  of  the  nation. 

Activity  now  prevailed  throughout  the  colonies.  The  generous  voice  of 
Pitt  had  inspired  the  Americans  with  hope  and  enthusiasm.  While  Amherst 
and  Wolfe  were  conquering  in  the  East,  Abercrombie  and  young  Lord 
Howe  were  leading  seven  thousand  regulars  and  nine  thousand  provincials 
through  the  forests  of  the  upper  Hudson,  and  over  Lake  George,  against 


WOLFE  LANDING  NEAR  LOUISBURG. 


Ticonderoga.  At  the  beginning  of  July,  the  whole  armament,  fifteen 
thousand  strong,  were  at  the  head  of  Lake  George. 

Like  Wolfe  in  the  East,  Lord  Howe  was  the  soul  of  the  expedition  in 
the  North.  He  was  a military  Lycurgus,  and  introduced  sweeping  reforms. 
He  abolished  ornament  in  dress;  caused  the  hair  of  his  men  to  be  cut  short 
to  prevent  maladies  engendered  by  wet  locks ; shortened  the  muskets  to 
make  them  more  convenient  in  tangled  woods,  and  had  their  barrels  painted 
black  to  prevent  discovery  by  their  glitter ; made  his  men  wear  leggins,  like 
the  Indians,  to  ward  ofT  briers  and  insects,  and  forbade  the  carrying  of 
chairs  and  tables  and  other  useless  things.  In  these  reforms  his  lordship  led 
by  his  personal  example.  One  day  he  invited  officers  to  dine  with  him. 
He  received  them  cordially  in  his  tent.  The  ground  was  covered  with  bear- 
skins. For  each  guest  was  a log  for  a seat,  such  as  his  lordship  occupied. 
Only  pork  and  beans  were  served.  He  drew  a sheath-knife  and  gave  one  to 


Chap.  XXII. 


BRITISH  ARMY  ON  LAKE  GEORGE. 


573 


each  of  the  officers,  and  told  them  to  eat.  His  example  was  cheerfully  fol- 
lowed. 

Early  on  the  5th  of  July,  1758,  Abercrombie’s  army  moved  down  Lake 
George  in  more  than  a thousand  bateaux  and  whale-boats,  accompanied  by 
artillery  on  rafts.  Just  at  twilight  they  landed  on  a long,  grassy  cape  for  rest 
and  refreshments,  after  a sultry  day.  It  was  Saturday  evening.  The  soldiers 
strolled  over  the  cape,  and  Lord  Howe  spent  hours  in  his  tent  in  consulta- 
tion with  Stark  and  other  provincials,  who  knew  the  country  well,  concern- 
ing the  situation  of  Ticonderoga  and  the  region  between  it  and  Lake 
George.  At  a little  before  midnight,  the  soldiers  were  re-embarked.  A 
most  inspiring  scene  was  presented.  Howe,  in  a large  boat,  and  surrounded 
by  Rangers  as  a guard,  led  the  van  of  the  flotilla.  The  regulars  occupied 
the  centre ; the  provincials,  the  wings.  The  sky  was  starry  and  serene. 
Not  a breeze  ruffled  the  waters  sleeping  quietly  in  the  shadows  of  the  moun- 
tains. The  oars  were  muffled  ; and  so  silently  did  the  army  move  over  the 
waters  in  the  darkness,  that  not  a scout  upon  the  hills  observed  them.  Day 
dawned  just  as  they  were  abreast  the  Blue  Mountain,  four  miles  from  their 
landing-place ; and  the  first  intimation  which  the  outposts  of  the  enemy 
there  had  of  the  approach  of  the  English,  was  the  apparition  of  scarlet 
uniforms  as  the  boats  swept  around  a point  and  the  army  prepared  to  land. 

In  four  columns — the  regulars  in  the  centre — the  army  moved  forward  as 
soon  as  they  were  landed,  leaving  their  provisions,  artillery  and  baggage 
behind.  They  were  soon  in  a dense  forest  with  incompetent  guides.  Sud- 
denly the  advanced  guard,  led  by  Lord  Howe,  fell  in  with  a party  of  Trench 
soldiers,  who  had  lost  their  way.  A sharp  skirmish  ensued,  and  Howe  was 
killed  by  a musket-ball.  The  whole  army  fell  into  confusion  because  of  his 
death,  and  Abercrombie  led  them  back  to  the  borders  of  the  Lake.  The 
next  day  pioneers,  under  the  command  of  the  brave  Colonel  Bradstreet, 
opened  the  way  to  the  Tails,  and  on  the  morning  of  the  8th,  Abercrombie 
moved  forward  with  his  whole  force,  leaving  his  artillery  behind,  to  attack  the 
outworks  of  the  Trench  at  Ticonderoga.  That  fort  was  then  occupied  by 
Montcalm  with  about  four  thousand  men. 

Relying  more  upon  the  reports  of  his  own  officers  than  upon  those  of 
the  despised  provincials,  Abercrombie  was  deceived  concerning  the  out- 
works and  the  men  behind  them.  His  troops,  moving  in  three  columns, 
were  ordered  to  scale  the  works,  without  co-operating  artillery.  Lour  hours 
they  were  endeavoring  to  cut  their  way  through  felled  trees,  and  attempting 
to  gain  the  intrenchments,  in  the  face  of  a heavy  fire,  when  they  were  com- 
pelled to  retreat.  Back  to  Lake  George,  Abercrombie  fled,  leaving  two 
thousand  men  (chiefly  regulars)  dead  or  wounded  in  the  forest.  He  had 


574 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  III. 


kept  himself  away  from  danger  during  the  struggle,  and  when  he  was  needed 
to  soothe  and  lead  his  defeated  troops,  he  could  not  be  found.  Montcalm 
had  been  continually  with  his  men,  conducting  every  movement  in  the  con- 
test. The  alarmed  Abercrombie  did  not  cease  flight  until  his  whole  army 
had  reached  their  old  encampment  at  the  head  of  Lake  George.  From  that 
point  Colonel  Bradstreet  was  allowed,  after  earnest  solicitation  on  his  part, 
to  lead  three  thousand  men  against  Fort  Frontenac(on  the  site  of  Kingston, 
Canada),  which  they  captured  late  in  August,  with  the  shipping  there.  The 
garrison  surrendered  on  the  27th  of  that  month ; and  so  English  dominion 
over  Lake  Ontario  was  secured.  Bradstreet  lost  only  three  men  in  the  fight, 
but  five  hundred  were  destroyed  by  a fearful  camp-fever  that  broke  out  soon 
afterward.  With  the  remainder  he  assisted  in  building  Fort  Stanwix,  on  the 
site  of  the  village  of  Rome,  on  the  upper  Mohawk.  Meanwhile,  Abercrom- 
bie, after  garrisoning  Fort  George,  which  had  been  built  near  the  head  of 
the  Lake,  returned  with  the  remainder  of  his  troops  to  Albany.  The  body 
of  Lord  Howe  was  conveyed  to  that  city  by  Captain  Philip  Schuyler,  and 
placed  in  his  family  vault.  When,  in  after  years,  the  remains  were  removed 
to  their  final  resting-place,  under  St.  Peter’s  Church  in  Albany,  it  was  found 
that  his  lordship’s  hair,  which  was  short  when  he  fell,  had  grown  several 
inches  in  length,  and  was  smooth  and  glossy. 

Montcalm  did  not  follow  the  retreating  English,  but  he  was  not  idle. 
He  strengthened  Ticonderoga,  and  sent  out  scouting  parties  to  annoy 
the  English  and  capture  their  foragers.  These  parties  were  watched  by 
Major  Rogers,  of  New  Hampshire,  and  his  Rangers,  of  which  Israel  Putnam 
was  second  in  command.  They  were  often  actors  in  exciting  scenes.  On 
one  occasion,  not  long  after  the  attack  on  Ticonderoga,  a party  of  F'rench 
and  Indians,  under  Captain  Molang,  captured  a convoy  of  English  wagoners. 
Rogers  and  Putnam  hastened  to  intercept  them  on  their  return.  Not  far 
from  the  present  village  of  Fort  Ann,  they  fell  into  an  Indian  ambush,  and  a 
severe  skirmish  ensued.  Putnam  and  some  of  his  party,  separated  from  the 
rest,  were  made  prisoners.  His  comrades  were  scalped,  but  he  was  reserved 
for  a more  cruel  fate.  His  captor  bound  him  to  a tree,  where  he  remained 
during  the  rest  of  the  fight,  and  his  clothes  were  riddled  with  bullets  by 
the  cross-firing  of  the  combatants.  Before  he  was  released,  a young  warrior 
amused  himself  in  throwing  his  keen  tomahawk  as  near  Putnam’s  head  as  he 
could  without  hitting  it.  When  the  major  was  unbound,  he  was  led  deeper 
into  the  forest,  and  tied  firmly  to  a tree.  Faggots  were  piled  around  him ; a 
torch  was  applied,  and  the  flames  were  crackling,  when  a furious  thunder- 
storm burst  over  the  country.  The  rain  almost  extinguished  the  fire,  but  it 
was  soon  revived  with  greater  intensity.  The  victim  had  lost  all  hope,  when 


Chap.  XXII. 


ESCAPES  OF  A HERO. 


575 


Molang,  who  had  heard  of  the  scene,  rushing  through  the  band  of  Indians, 
released  Putnam  and  conducted  him  to  Ticonderoga. 

Putnam  had  many  other  hair-breadth  escapes  from  death  in  that  region. 
He  spent  the  winter  of  1756-7  on  an  island  in  the  Hudson,  near  Fort 
Edward.  The  barracks  of  the  fort  took  fire.  The  flames  spread  rapidly 
toward  the  magazine,  in  which  were  three  hundred  barrels  of  gunpowder. 
Putnam  hastened  from  the  island  to  assist  in  putting  out  the  fire.  Nearer 


PUTNAM  IN  PERIL. 


and  nearer  it  crawled  toward  the  magazine,  when  the  intrepid  major  mounted 
to  the  roof  and  ordered  buckets  of  water  to  be  handed  up  to  him.  His 
labor  seemed  vain.  The  fire  was  charring  the  external  planks  of  the  maga- 
zine, and  Colonel  Haviland,  the  commander  of  the  garrison,  ordered  Putnam 
to  come  down  from  his  place  of  imminent  danger.  But  the  major  persevered 
and  put  out  the  fire.  He  was  several  weeks  recovering  from  the  burns  he 
then  received.  It  was  at  this  post,  and  just  before  this  occurrence,  that 
Putnam  had  his  famous  duel  with  a regular  officer.  That  officer  challenged 


576 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  III. 


the  major  to  fight.  As  the  challenged  had  the  right  to  choose  weapons  and 
methods,  Putnam  proposed  that  each  should  be  seated  upon  a keg  of  gun- 
powder with  a fuse  attached ; that  the  fuse  of  each  should  be  lighted  at  the 
same  time,  and  that  he  who  should  sit  longest  should  be  regarded  as  the 
bravest  man.  Two  kegs  were  brought  from  Putnam’s  quarters.  The  prin- 
cipals were  seated  upon  them,  and  the  fuses  lighted  by  the  seconds.  The 
fire  flashed  along  the  trains  for  a few  moments,  when  the  British  officer  arose 
in  haste  and  fled  from  the  fatal  keg.  Putnam  walked  leisurely  to  his  an- 
tagonist’s fuse  and  put  it  out,  and  then  seated  himself  again  on  his  own  keg, 
with  perfect  unconcern,  cheered  by  his  comrades.  The  kegs  contained 
nothing  more  destructive  than  onions. 

When  Amherst,  at  Cape  Breton,  heard  of  the  disaster  at  Ticonderoga,  he 
sailed  for  Boston  with  four  regiments  and  a battalion,  and  made  forced 
marches  across  New  England  to  Albany.  He  reached  the  camp  of  Aber- 
crombie in  October,  and  the  following  month  he  received  a commission 
appointing  him  commander-in-chief.  Abercrombie  returned  to  England, 
and  to  divert  public  censure  from  himself,  he  roundly  abused  the  provincials. 

While  disaster  was  attending  the  army  in  the  North,  General  Joseph 
Forbes  had  gathered  about  six  thousand  men  at  Fort  Cumberland,  in  Mary- 
land, preparatory  to  a march  against  Fort  Du  Quesne.  Washington  was 
there  with  about  two  thousand  Virginians;  and  Colonel  Bouquet  had  come 
up  from  the  Carolinas  with  over  a thousand  Highlanders,  three  hundred 
royal  Americans,  and  a body  of  Cherokee  Indians.  It  was  known  that 
Fort  Du  Quesne  was  feebly  garrisoned,  and  Washington  advised  an  im- 
mediate advance  over  Braddock’s  road.  It  was  then  July.  In  less  than 
thirty  days  the  fort  might  have  been  taken.  But  other  counsels  prevailed, 
and  Forbes,  who  was  so  ill  that  he  was  carried  on  a litter,  determined  to 
construct  a new  road  for  his  troops  over  the  Alleghanies.  It  was  an  almost 
fatal  mistake.  When  autumn  came,  and  it  was  known  that  the  capture  of 
P'rontenac  by  Bradstreet  had  discouraged  the  Indians  and  caused  many  of 
them  to  leave  the  French,  the  army  was  yet  creeping  slowly  over  the  moun- 
tains. Washington  was  impatient  and  indignant  ; and  he  wrote  to  the 
Speaker  of  the  Virginia  Assembly,  saying:  “See  how  our  time  has  been 
misspent ! Behold  how  the  golden  opportunity  has  been  lost,  perhaps  never 
more  to  be  regained  ! ” 

At  about  that  time  Bouquet  was  sent  forward,  with  two  thousand  men, 
to  Loyal  Hanna,  in  Westmoreland  county,  Pennsylvania,  to  build  a fort. 
Bouquet,  anxious  to  win  renown,  sent  out  Major  Grant,  with  eight  hundred 
Highlanders  and  some  Virginians  under  Captain  Bullitt,  to  reconnoitre  Du 
Quesne.  Grant  took  post  on  a hill  near  the  fort,  and  dividing  his  force, 


Chap.  XXII. 


ABANDONMENT  OF  FORT  DU  QUESNE. 


577 


tried  to  draw  the  garrison  out  into  an  ambush.  They  made  a sortie  in  force, 
for  four  hundred  men  had  lately  been  added  to  the  garrison.  They  kept  the 
English  divided  and  defeated  them  in  a severe  skirmish,  killing  and  wound- 
ing many,  and  taking  some  prisoners.  As  in  the  case  of  Braddock’s  defeat, 
the  regulars  gave  way  on  this  occasion,  and  the  little  army  was  saved  from 
total  destruction  or  capture  only  by  the  gallantry  of  Captain  Bullitt  and  his 
provincials.  The  French,  elated  with  their  successes,  proceeded  to  attack 
Bouquet  at  Loyal  Hanna,  but  after  a fight  of  four  hours,  they  were  repulsed 
with  considerable  loss. 

Washington  had  anxiously  desired  to  be  in  the  advance.  He  was  now 
sent  forward  to  Loyal  Hanna,  where  he  was  placed  at  the  head  of  a brigade 
composed  of  a thousand  provincials,  and  ordered  to  move  in  front  of  the  army. 
But  it  was  November  before  General  Forbes,  with  the  artillery  and  main 
body,  reached  that  point,  and  full  fifty  miles  of  rugged  way  lay  between  the 
army  and  Fort  Du  Quesne.  A council  of  war  was  held,  when  it  was  de- 
cided that  the  lateness  of  the  season  made  it  prudent  to  defer  the  attack 
upon  Fort  Du  Quesne  until  another  season.  Fortunately  Washington,  just 
at  that  time,  heard  of  the  desertion  of  the  French  by  their  Indian  allies,  and 
the  weakness  of  the  garrison  at  Fort  Du  Quesne.  He  obtained  permission 
to  push  on  with  his  brigade.  The  main  army  followed.  The  provincials, 
inspired  with  the  zeal  of  their  young  leader,  overcame  every  obstacle  with 
alacrity,  and  very  soon  they  stood  upon  a hill  overlooking  the  object  of  their 
destination.  The  garrison,  only  five  hundred  in  number,  alarmed  at  their 
approach,  set  fire  to  the  fort  that  night  and  fled  down  the  Ohio  in  boats  by 
the  light  of  the  conflagration.  The  ruins  were  entered  the  next  day  (No- 
vember 25,  1758),  and  over  the  charred  remains  the  British  standard  was 
unfurled.  In  honor  of  the  great  English  statesman,  the  name  of  Fort  Pitt 
was  given  to  Fort  Du  Quesne,  and  the  little  village  that  soon  grew  around  it 
was  called  Pittsburgh.  Two  Virginia  regiments  were  left  there  as  a garrison, 
and  the  main  army  returned  to  the  borders  of  civilization.  The  great  object 
of  the  war  in  the  middle  colonies  was  accomplished.  The  basin  of  the  Ohio 
was  secured  to  the  English. 

Washington  marched  the  remainder  of  his  troops  to  Williamsburgh, 
where  he  took  leave  of  them  with  the  intention  of  quitting  military  life. 
He  had  been  elected  a member  of  the  Virginia  Assembly,  and  was  affianced 
to  the  charming  widow  of  Daniel  Parke  Custis,  who  was  about  his  own  age — 
twenty-six  years.  They  were  wedded  at  the  “ White-House,”  the  residence 
of  the  bride,  on  the  17th  of  January  (6th,  Old  Style),  1759,  by  the  Rev. 
David  Mossom,  for  forty  years  rector  of  St.  Peter’s  Church,  New  Kent,  near 
by.  Then  Washington  took  his  seat  in  the  Assembly  at  Williamsburg;  and 


578 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  III. 


at  about  the  close  of  their  honey-moon,  the  Speaker  of  the  House,  by  its 
order,  rising  from  his  chair,  thanked  the  young  colonel  in  the  name  of 
Virginia  for  his  public  services.  Washington,  surprised,  arose  to  reply,  but 
could  not  summon  words.  His  face  flushed  with  confusion,  when  the 
Speaker  relieved  him  by  saying:  “Sit  down.  Colonel  Washington;  your 
modesty  is  equal  to  your  valor,  and  that  surpasses  the  power  of  any  lan- 
guage I possess.”  That  Speaker  was  Mr.  Robinson,  father  of  Beverly 
Robinson  of  New  York,  at  whose  house  Washington  met  Mary  Phillipse 
about  ten  years  before. 

With  the  expulsion  of  the  French  from  Fort  Du  Quesne,  the  campaign 
of  1759  was  ended.  It  had  been  a successful  one  for  the  English.  They 
had  captured  three  of  the  most  important  of  the  French  posts — Louisburg, 
Frontenac,  and  Fort  Du  Quesne.  The  faith  of  the  Indians  in  the  invin- 
cibility of  the  French  was  eclipsed;  and  at  a great  council  held  at  Easton, 
on  the  Delaware,  in  the  autumn  of  1758,  several  powerful  tribes  were  present, 
and  joined  the  Six  Nations  in  making  treaties  of  friendship  and  neutrality 
with  the  English.  The  right  arm  of  French  power  was  thus  paralyzed,  and 
peace  was  secured  to  the  frontiers  of  Pennsylvania  and  Virginia.  The 
people  of  Canada  were  discouraged.  Their  resources  were  almost  ex- 
hausted, and  they  cried  for  peace.  Montcalm  wrote  to  Vaudreuil : “ I am 
not  discouraged,  nor  are  my  troops  ; we  are  resolved  to  find  our  graves  under 
the  ruins  of  the  colony.” 

The  final  struggle  for  dominion  in  America  was  now  at  hand.  Pitt  had 
studied  the  geography  of  North  America  with  diligence,  and  based  his  plans 
upon  its  teachings.  Encouraged  by  the  results  of  the  campaign  in  1758,  in 
America  and  in  Europe  (where  the  victorious  Frederick  the  Great  of  Russia, 
who  had  opened  the  Seven  Years  War  on  the  continent  in  1756,  was  the  ally 
of  the  English),  Pitt  conceived  a magnificent  scheme  for  conquering  all 
Canada,  and  crushing  French  power  in  America  forever.  That  dominion 
was  now  confined  to  the  region  of  the  St.  Lawrence,  for  the  settlements  in 
the  West  and  South  were  cut  off  from  co-operation  with  the  Canadians. 

Pitt  had  the  rare  good  fortune  to  possess  the  confidence  of  all  parties  at 
home  and  in  the  colonies.  The  English  people  were  dazzled  by  his  real 
greatness;  the  colonists  were  deeply  impressed  by  his  justice.  He  had 
promptly  reimbursed  all  the  expenses  of  the  last  campaign  incurred  by  the 
colonial  assemblies,  amounting  to  about  a million  dollars,  and  they  as 
promptly  seconded  his  scheme  of  conquest,  which  had  been  communicated 
to  them  under  an  oath  of  .secrecy.  Whatever  he  asked  for  he  obtained. 
When  he  asked  for  sixty  million  dollars,  and  an  immense  force  for  service  on 
sea  and  land  in  1759,  in  Europe  and  America,  the  parliament  almost  unani- 


Chap.  XXII. 


CAMPAIGN  AGAINST  CANADA. 


579 


mously  granted  his  request.  “He  declares  only  what  they  would  have  them 
do,  and  they  do  it,”  wrote  Chesterfield. 

The  general  plan  of  operations  against  Canada  was  similar  to  that  of 
Phipps  and  Winthrop,  almost  seventy  years  before.  A strong  land  and 
naval  force,  under  the  command  of  General  Wolfe  and  Admiral  Saunders, 
were  to  ascend  the  St.  Lawrence  and  attack  Quebec.  Another  force,  led  by 
Amherst,  was  to  drive  the  French  from  Lake  Champlain,  seize  Montreal  and 
join  Wolfe  at  Quebec ; and  a third  expedition,  commanded  by  General 
Prideaux,  was  to  take  possession  of  Fort  Niagara,  and  then  hasten  over 
Lake  Ontario  and  down  the  St.  Lawrence  to  Montreal.  To  General 
Stanwix  was  intrusted  the  task  of  completing  the  occupation  of  the  posts 
in  the  West  from  Fort  Pitt  to  Lake  Erie. 

Pitt  would  not  listen  to  the  vicious  twaddle  about  enforcing  royal 
authority  in  America,  that  fell  from  the  lips  of  the  Lords  of  Trade.  “We 
want  the  limited  co-operation  of  the  Americans,”  said  the  wise  minister, 
“and  to  have  it  we  must  be  just  and  allow  them  freedom.”  These  words 
ran  like  an  electric  thrill  through  the  hearts  of  the  colonists,  and  there  was 
eagerness  everywhere  to  manifest  loyalty  and  to  help  the  cause.  Men  and 
money  were  freely  given  ; while  the  P'rench  in  Canada,  growing  poorer  and 
diminishing  in  numbers,  received  scanty  aid  and  little  encouragement  from 
P'rance.  “The  king  relies  on  your  zeal  and  obstinacy  of  courage,”  the 
P'rench  minister  wrote  to  Montcalm.  “ Without  unexpected  good  fortune  or 
blunders  on  the  part  of  the  English,”  the  general  plainly  replied,  “ Canada 
must  be  lost  this  campaign,  or  certainly  the  next.”  But  France  could  do  no 
more  for  her  distant  colony,  for  her  wars  nearer  by  had  exhausted  her  treas- 
ury. With  these  relative  prospects,  the  belligerents  entered  upon  the  con- 
test in  the  early  summer  of  1759. 

Late  in  June,  Amherst  was  at  the  head  of  Lake  George  with  about 
twelve  thousand  men,  regulars  and  provincials  in  equal  numbers.  There  he 
' lingered  for  about  a month,  and  then  passed  over  that  beautiful  'sheet  of 
water  with  banners  flying  and  martial  music  resounding,  for  he  felt  strong 
and  did  not  seek  concealment.  On  the  22d  of  July,  he  appeared  before 
Fort  Carillon,  at  Ticonderoga,  with  about  eleven  thousand  men.  Boula- 
marque,  the  French  commander  there,  had  just  heard  that  Wolfe  and 
Saunders  were  before  Quebec.  Seeing  no  chance  for  successful  resistance 
nor  reinforcements,  he  actually  destroyed  the  fort  and  fled  with  his  garrison 
down  the  Lake  to  Fort  Frederic,  on  Crown  Point,  on  the  26th.  Amherst 
pursued,  and  on  his  approach  on  the  ist  of  August,  the  French  abandoned 
that  post  also  and  fled  to  Isle-aux-Noix  in  the  Sorel  River,  the  outlet  of 
Lake  Champlain.  Amherst  took  possession  of  Crown  Point,  without  oppo- 


58o 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  III. 


sition  ; and  if  he  had  still  pursued  as  he  intended  to  do,  he  might  have 
unfurled  the  British  flag  in  triumph  over  the  walls  of  Montreal  before  the 
close  of  September.  The  country  between  Lake  Champlain  and  the  St. 
Lawrence  had  been  shorn  of  men  to  reinforce  Montcalm  at  Quebec,  who 
called  loudly  for  troops  to  avert  impending  danger  there.  Old  men,  women 
and  children  were  compelled  to  gather  in  the  harvests  near  Montreal,  to 
avoid  starvation,  and  the  Indians  with  the  French  army  had  deserted  their 
allies.  But  Amherst,  deceived  by  reports  of  the  strength  of  the  French  at 
the  foot  of  the  Lake,  and  of  a strong-armed  flotilla  there,  lingered  at  Crown 
Point  until  October,causing  repairs  to  be  made  to  the  fort  at  Ticonderoga, 
and  constructing  a new  one  on  the  promontory  where  he  was  encamped. 


FEEBLE  ONES  HARVESTING. 


He  had,  meanwhile,  been  building  vessels  to  transport  his  troops  down  the 
Lake.  On  these  he  embarked  his  army  at  the  middle  of  October,  when 
heavy  storms  sweeping  over  the  waters,  and  a message  from  Quebec,  caused 
him  to  turn  back  and  put  his  army  into  winter  quarters  at  Crown  Point. 
Captain  Loring,  with  a little  squadron  of  armed  vessels,  defying  the  storms, 
went  down  the  Lake  and  destroyed  the  French  flotilla,  and  so  gained  the 
mastery  over  that  important  sheet  of  water.  The  troops  at  Crown  Point 
built  there  that  strong  fortification  whose  picturesque  ruins  still  attract  the 
attention  of  the  summer  tourist  on  Lake  Champlain. 

Prideau.x’s  little  force,  destined  to  capture  Fort  Niagara,  sailed  from 
Oswego  on  the  first  day  of  July,  leaving  Colonel  Haldimand  to  repair  the 


Chap.  XXII. 


OPERATIONS  NEAR  THE  GREAT  LAKES. 


581 


works  there.  The  troops  that  embarked  consisted  of  two  New  York  bat- 
talions, one  of  Royal  Americans,  two  British  regiments,  a detachment  of 
artillery,  and  Indian  auxiliaries  under  Sir  William  Johnson.  They  moved 
slowly  along  the  southern  shores  of  Lake  Ontario,  and  on  the  15th  of  July, 
landed  six  miles  east  of  Fort  Niagara  without  opposition.  The  siege  was 
commenced  immediately.  The  fort  stood  near  the  bank  of  the  Lake  at  the 
mouth  of  the  swift-flowing  Niagara  River,  where  La  Salle  planted  his  stock- 
ade. The  garrison  was  composed  of  a little  more  than  six  hundred  soldiers. 
The  commander,  aware  of  danger,  had  sent  for  forces  to  be  drawn  from  the 
posts  between  there  and  Fort  Du  Quesne  and  from  the  South,  and  they  were 
on  the  way,  almost  three  thousand  strong,  of  whom  one-half  were  Indians. 

At  the  beginning  of  the  siege,  Prideaux  was  killed  by  the  bursting  of  one 
of  his  own  cannons,  and  the  command  devolved  on  Sir  William  Johnson. 
He  disposed  his  force  so  as  to  meet  the  approaching  army  for  the  relief  of 
the  fort.  They  came  in  collision  on  the  24th  of  July.  A severe  fight 
occurred,  when  the  French  and  their  allies  were  defeated  and  dispersed, 
leaving  their  killed  and  wounded  lying  in  the  forest.  On  the  following  day 
the  fort  and  its  dependencies,  with  the  garrison,  were  surrendered  to  the 
English,  and  British  dominion  was  immediately  extended  along  Lake  Erie 
to  Presque  Isle,  now  Erie.  The  connecting  link  between  Canada  and 
Louisiana  was  now  broken,  never  to  be  restored. 

Sir  William  was  so  encumbered  with  his  prisoners,  and  being  unable  to 
procure  a sufficient  number  of  boats  for  transportation,  he  could  not  proceed 
to  Montreal,  according  to  the  original  plan,  to  co-operate  with  Amherst,  so 
he  garrisoned  Fort  Niagara  and  returned  with  the  remainder  of  the  troops 
to  Oswego,  and  thence  to  Albany.  These  events  drew  De  Levi,  Montcalm’s 
second  in  command,  from  Quebec,  with  a body  of  troops  to  prevent  the 
Americans  descending  the  St.  Lawrence.  For  awhile  he  watched  the  passes 
at  the  rapids  below  Ogdensburg,  when  he  returned  to  Quebec. 

The  great  event  of  the  campaign  was  impending  while  those  just  de- 
scribed were  occurring.  The  fleet  of  Admiral  Saunders  (whose  lieutenant 
was  Admiral  Holmes),  consisting  of  twenty-two  line-of-battle  ships  and  as 
many  frigates  and  smaller  vessels,  and  bearing  eight  thousand  troops  under 
General  Wolfe,  ascended  the  St.  Lawrence  as  soon  as  the  ice  had  left  that 
stream,  and  anchored  off  the  beautiful  island  of  Orleans,  a few  miles  below 
Quebec,  and  in  full  view  of  the  city.  Upon  that  island  the  troops  landed 
on  the  27th  of  June.  Among  the  subordinate  naval  officers  was  James 
Cook,  who  afterward  circumnavigated  the  globe  and  discovered  the  Sand- 
wich Islands.  Among  the  commanders  of  land  troops  were  General  Robert 
Monckton,  afterward  governor  of  New  York;  the  impetuous  Col.  Murray; 


582 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  III, 


General  George  Townshend,  who  soon  became  a peer  of  the  realm  ; Colonel 
Guy  Carleton,  in  command  of  grenadiers,  and  Lieutenant-Colonel  William 
Howe,  a leader  of  light  infantry,  both  of  whom  were  conspicuous  in  the 
royal  service  in  our  war  for  independence. 

Quebec  was  partly  on  a high  rocky  promontory  at  the  confluence  of  the 
St.  Lawrence  and  St.  Charles  rivers,  and  upon  a plain  on  the  borders  of  the 
latter.  The  upper  town  was  surrounded  by  a strong  wall  with  five  gates. 
Two  of  these  opened  out  upon  an  elevated  plateau,  on  the  southwestern 
side,  called  the  Plains  of  Abraham,  whose  border  on  the  St.  Lawrence  is 
marked  by  steep  declivities.  The  shores  of  that  river  were  lined  with 
batteries  above  and  below  the  city,  and  the  town  was  strongly  garrisoned. 
Along  the  St.  Lawrence  between  Quebec  and  the  Montmorenci  River,  a dis- 
tance of  some  miles,  lay  Montcalm,  with  a force  of  French  Canadians  and 
Indians,  in  an  intrenched  camp,  a larger  portion  of  the  former  having  been 
impressed  into  the  service. 

Wolfe  prepared  for  a siege  with  amazing  skill  and  vigor.  On  his  left  lay 
his  proud  fleet  at  anchor,  and  the  beautiful  island  was  dotted  with  the  white 
tents  of  his  army.  During  the  day  after  his  arrival,  clouds  gathered  in 
ominous  blackness.  The  evening  was  dark  and  tempestuous,  lighted  only, 
until  about  midnight,  by  flashes  of  lightning.  Suddenly  a lurid  glare  shot 
across  the  billows  as  a fleet  of  fire-ships  went  blazing  down  the  river  in  wrath 
toward  the  English  shipping.  The  skillful  British  seamen  caught  each  vessel 
as  it  came,  and  turned  it  away  from  the  English  ships.  Their  flames  expired 
in  darkness  far  below  Orleans,  as  they  drifted  on  the  current. 

The  English,  under  General  Monckton,  now  proceeded  to  take  possession 
of  Point  Levi,  opposite  Quebec.  There,  on  the  30th  of  June,  they  began 
to  erect  batteries  within  a mile  of  the  town.  From  there  red-hot  cannon 
balls  and  blazing  bomb-shells  were  hurled  upon  the  city.  These  set  fire  to 
fifty  houses  in  one  night  in  the  lower  town,  but  the  citadel,  crowning  Cape 
Diamond,  the  highest  part  of  the  promontory,  was  beyond  the  reach  of  their 
missiles,  and  the  real  military  strength  of  Quebec  remained  untouched.  It 
was  upon  this  natural  strength  of  the  position  that  Montcalm  relied  for  final 
victory,  more  than  upon  his  exhausted  troops  and  unwilling  conscripts. 
Wolfe  knew  this,  and  resolved  to  attack  the  French  commander  in  his  for- 
tified camp,  and  for  that  purpose  he  first  landed  a strong  force, under  Generals 
Murray  and  Townshend,  below  the  Montmorenci,  on  the  loth  of  July,  and 
formed  an  intrenched  camp  there.  But  when  he  looked  for  a place  to  cross 
that  stream,  he  found  the  only  fordable  spot  three  miles  from  its  mouth, 
and  the  opposite  bank,  steep  and  wooded,  strongly  fortified  by  the  vigilant 
Montcalm. 


Chap.  XXII. 


THE  ENGLISH  BEFORE  QUEBEC. 


583 


The  impatient  Wolfe  now  reconnoitered  the  shores  from  the  Mont- 
morenci  to  Quebec,  and  along  the  craggy  base  of  the  Plains  of  Abraham  far 
up  toward  Sillery.  Everywhere  military  preparations  for  defence  met  his 
eye.  He  returned  to  the  Montmorenci  chafing  with  zeal,  but  conscious  that 
he  had  made  no  advance  toward  the  capture  of  the  walled  city  which  he  had 
threatened  for  almost  a month.  Fire-ships  again  came  blazing  down  the 
river,  but  were  again  turned  away  harmless.  He  saw  danger  in  delay,  and 
resolved  to  risk  more;  so,  at  the  close  of  July,  he  ordered  Monckton  to 
cross  over  with  his  regiments,  grenadiers  and  other  troops,  and  land  upon 
the  beach  at  the  foot  of  the  cataract  of  Montmorenci,  where  that  stream, 
after  passing  for  a mile  over  a rocky  bed  in  continuous  roaring  rapids,  leaps 
into  a dark  chasm,  at  one  bound,  two  hundred  feet  below. 

Murray  and  Townshend  were  now  ordered  to  force  a passage  across  the 
Montmorenci  below  the  falls  at  low  tide,  and  co-operate  with  Monckton,  on 
his  arrival,  in  an  attack  upon  the  French  lines.  Wolfe  selected  the  spot  for 
the  landing  and  attack.  A signal  was  given,  and  boats  from  the  fleet  went 
swiftly  across  the  St.  Fawrence  from  Point  Levi,  and  first  landed  grenadiers 
and  Royal  Americans,  under  cover  of  a fire  from  some  of  the  English 
vessels.  Monckton’s  regiments  followed.  Owing  to  confusion  in  landing, 
there  was  delay,  when  the  grenadiers,  impatient,  would  no  longer  wait  for 
the  troops  across  the  Montmorenci,  who  were  to  support  them,  and  rushed 
up  the  acclivity  to  penetrate  the  French  camp.  Already  their  foes  had  kept 
up  a sharp  fire  of  musketry  and  great  guns  for  some  time ; now  they  were 
concentrated,  and  poured  such  a destructive  shower  of  lead  and  iron  upon 
the  assailants,  that  the  English  were  repulsed  with  much  slaughter.  They 
fell  back  in  confusion  to  the  shelter  of  a battery  and  block-house  on  the 
beach.  Wolfe  ordered  a retreat,  but  a terrific  thunder-shower  that  burst 
upon  them  at  that  moment  detained  them  until  darkness  came,  when  the 
tide  came  roaring  up  against  the  current  of  the  St.  Fawrence,  threatening  to 
submerge  the  troops  on  the  narrow  beach.  Monckton,  with  great  coolness, 
embarked  the  shattered  army  in  boats,  and  most  of  them  were  saved.  They 
had  lost  between  four  and  five  hundred  of  their  companions  in  the  contests 
of  the  day. 

When  news  of  these  events  reached  England,  conservative  men  shook 
their  heads  and  declared  that  Wolfe  was  mad.  “ Mad  ! ” exclaimed  the  king, 
“ Wolfe  mad  ! I wish  he’d  bite  some  of  the  other  generals.” 

38 


CHAPTER  XXIII. 


WOLFE’S  illness  and  despondency — PREPARATIONS  TO  ATTACK  QUEBEC — BATTLE,  AND  DEATH 
OF  WOLFE  AND  MONTCALM — SURRENDER  OF  QUEBEC — ATTEMPT  TO  RECAPTURE  IT — SUR- 
RENDER OF  MONTREAL  AND  ALL  CANADA — ROGERS’  EXPEDITION  TO  DETROIT — INTERVIEW 
WITH  PONTIAC — CAPTURE  OF  DETROIT — WAR  WITH  THE  SOUTHERN  INDIANS — WAR  CON- 
TINUED ABROAD — TREATY  OF  PARIS — DISCONTENT  OF  THE  INDIANS — CONSPIRACY  OF  PONTIAC 
AND  ITS  EFFECTS — FATE  OF  PONTIAC. 

WOLFE  soon  heard,  with  joy,  news  of  the  capture  of  Fort  Niagara 
and  the  expulsion  of  the  French  from  Lake  Champlain.  He 
now  listened  eagerly  for  the  drums  of  Amherst,  for  he  expected 
that  general  would  speedily  join  him.  He  sent  Murray  above  Quebec  to 
destroy  the  French  shipping,  and  open  communication  with  Amherst.  But 
that  general  did  not  appear,  for  reasons  already  mentioned. 

Chagrin  because  of  his  failure  at  Montmorenci,  fatigue,  anxiety,  dis- 
appointed hopes,  and  the  extreme  heat  of  the  weather,  prostrated  Wolfe 
with  fever  and  dysentery.  For  almost  a month  his  life  was  in  great  peril. 
Early  in  September  he  was  able  to  hold  a council  of  war  at  his  bedside,  and 
on  the  gth  he  wrote  a desponding  letter  to  the  Earl  of  Holderness,  in  which 
he  mentioned  the  critical  situation  of  the  army  and  of  himself.  “ My  consti- 
tution,” he  wrote,  “ is  entirely  ruined,  without  the  consolation  of  having  done 
any  considerable  service  to  the  state,  or  without  any  prospect  of  it.”  But 
he  had  told  the  earl  that  a council  of  war  had  decided  that  his  shattered 
army  should  attack  the  foe.  His  letter  reached  London  at  the  middle  of 
October.  The  result  of  the  promised  attack  was  awaited  with  intense 
anxiety,  for  the  young  commander’s  epistle  had  created  anger  and  conster- 
nation in  England.  It  was  followed  three  days  later  by  news  of  that  result, 
and  the  hearts  of  Wolfe’s  countrymen  throbbed  quickly  with  emotions  of 
joy  and  grief. 

It  was  determined  to  land  a large  body  of  troops  above  Quebec,  for 
the  purpose  of  drawing  Montcalm  from  his  intrenchments  into  an  open 
field  fight,  in  which  the  English  would  have  the  advantage.  Wolfe,  with 
some  companions,  in  a boat,  reconnoitered  the  shores,  and  selected  the  cove 
that  yet  bears  his  name,  for  the  landing-place.  From  that  cove  a narrow 
path  through  a ravine  tangled  with  vines  and  brambles  led  up  to  the  Plains 


Chap.  XXIII. 


THE  ENGLISH  ARMY  ON  THE  RIVER. 


585 


of  Abraham  ; and  along  that  perilous  way  it  was  resolved  the  troops  should 
climb  stealthily  in  darkness,  if  possible.  The  fleet  was  prepared  to  co- 
operate with  the  army,  and  on  the  12th  of  September  (1759)  everything 
was  ready  for  the  execution  of  the  dangerous  and  even  desperate  enter- 
prise. 

In  the  afternoon  of  that  day,  a feint  was  made  in  the  direction  of  Mont- 
calm’s camp  by  the  ships  and  some  troops,  to  divert  the  attention  of  the  foe 
from  the  real  point  of  attack.  At  nine  o’clock  in  the  evening  Wolfe  and  his 


LORD  HOWE.  GENERAL  ABERCROMBIE. 

LORD  AMHERST.  GENERAL  WOLFE. 


main  army  were  embarked  on  flat-boats  above  Point  Levi,  and  floated  up 
the  river  with  the  flood-tide,  some  distance  above  the  selected  landing-place, 
followed  by  the  ships.  There  was  joy  in  Quebec  and  the  French  camp,  for 
it  was  believed  the  English  were  retreating. 

The  evening  was  warm  and  star-lit.  Wolfe  seemed  in  better  spirits  than 
usual,  and  at  the  evening  mess,  with  a glass  of  wine  in  his  hand,  and  in  the 


586 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  III. 


light  of  a lantern,  he  sang  impromptu  that  little  campaigning  song  which 
has  been  often  chanted  in  the  tents  of  British  soldiers  since,  beginning — 

“ Why,  soldiers,  why, 

■ Should  we  be  melancholy,  boys? 

Why,  soldiers  why. 

Whose  business  ’tis  to  die  !” 

But  a cloud  of  presentiment  that  his  end  was  near  evidently  shadowed  the 
young  hero’s  thoughts ; and  when,  at  past  midnight,  black  clouds  had 
gathered  in  the  sky,  and  the  boats  were  floating  silently  back,  with  muffled 
but  unused  oars,  upon  the  ebb  tide,  to  land  the  troops  under  cover  of  the 
darkness  at  the  selected  place,  he  repeated,  in  a low  musing  tone  to  the 
officers  around  him,  that  touching  stanza  in  Gray’s  “ Elegy  in  a Country 
Churchyard  ” — 

“ The  boast  of  heraldry,  the  pomp  of  power. 

And  all  that  beauty,  all  that  wealth  e’er  gave, 

Await,  alike,  the  inevitable  hour — 

The  path  of  glory  leads  but  to  the  grave.” 

“ Now,  gentlemen,”  said  Wolfe,  as  he  closed  the  verse,  “ I would  prefer  being 
the  author  of  that  poem  to  the  glory  of  beating  the  French  to-morrow.” 

In  the  darkness,  sixteen  hundred  troops  landed  at  Wolfe’s  Cove,  and 
others  speedily  followed.  The  general  led  the  way,  with  Monckton  and 
Murray,  and  Lieutenant-Colonel  Howe.  They  hastened  up  the  acclivity  in 
the  face  of  shots  from  startled  sentinels  along  the  brow  of  the  cliff,  and 
reached  the  Plains  of  Abraham  at  early  dawn,  three  hundred  feet  above  the 
St.  Lawrence.  At  sunrise,  about  five  thousand  British  troops  were  standing 
in  battle  array,  on  the  open  plain  before  Quebec.  News  of  the  surprising 
apparition  had  gone  into  the  city  like  the  wind,  and  thence  to  Montcalm 
at  Beaufort.  He  supposed,  from  the  first  account  received,  that  it  was  only 
a small  party  who  had  come  to  burn  a few  houses  and  retire ; but  when 
later  information  reached  him,  he  marched  a greater  portion  of  his  army 
from  his  camp  to  attack  the  British,  saying:  “If  it  is  necessary  to  fight 
them,  it  is  necessary  to  crush  them.” 

At  ten  o’clock  the  two  armies  stood  face  to  face  on  that  lofty  plateau,  the 
French  on  the  higher  ground  near  the  city  wall.  Neither  party  had  much 
artillery — the  English  only  a six-pounder,  which  some  sailors  had  dragged 
up  the  ravine.  They  were  stronger  than  Montcalm  imagined.  He  sent  a 
messenger  to  his  camp  for  fifteen  hundred  reserves,  and  another  after  a 
detachment  that  had  gone  up  the  river.  The  two  armies  were  about  equal 
in  numbers  then,  and  the  impatient  Montcalm  began  the  attack  without 


Chap.  XXJIl.  WOLFE  AND  MONTCALM  FATALLY  WOUNDED. 


587 


waiting  for  his  reinforcements.  Wolfe  was  at  the  head  of  the  grenadiers 
who  had  been  repulsed  at  the  Montmorenci.  They  burned  with  a desire  to 
wipe  out  the  stain  of  that  event,  for  their  beloved  commander  had  censured 
them  for  their  rashness.  He  ordered  his  soldiers  to  double-shot  their  mus- 
kets and  reserve  their  fire  until  the  enemy  should  be  very  near. 

A short  and  severe  battle  now  ensued.  Terrible  were  the  volleys  of  the 
double-shotted  mus- 
kets at  close  quarters. 

The  French  were  ' “ 

thrown  into  confu- 
sion, when  they  were 
attacked  by  the  bayo- 
net so  terrible  in  the 
hands  of  English  sol- 
diers. The  general 
was  urging  on  the 
bayonet  charge,  when 
a bullet  slightly 
wounded  him  in  the 
head.  Another  soon 
wounded  him  in  the 
abdomen  ; and  a third 
pierced  his  breast 
wdth  deadly  effect. 

“ Support  me,”  said 
the  general  to  an  offi- 
cer near  him  ; “ Do 
not  let  my  brave  sol- 
diers see  me  drop ; 
the  day  is  ours — keep 
it.”  He  was  borne  to 
the  rear  in  a dying 
condition,  when  the 
officer,  on  whose 
shoulder  he  was  lean- 
ing, cried  out,  “ They  run : they  run!”  “Who  runs?”  feebly  inquired 
Wolfe.  “The  enemy,  sir;  they  give  way  everywhere,”  said  the  officer. 
The  general  then  gave  an  important  order  for  a movement  to  cut  off  the 
fugitives,  and  feebly  said:  “Now,  God  be  praised.  I die  happy!”  He 
never  spoke  again,  and  soon  afterward  expired.  Montcalm  had  also  been 


WOLFE  MORTALLY  WOUNDED. 


588 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  111. 


mortally  wounded,  and  died  the  next  morning.  His  body  was  buried  in 
the  grounds  of  the  Ursuline  Convent  at  Quebec.  In  its  chapel  a small 
mural  tablet  commemorates  him ; and  there  I saw,  a few  years  ago,  the  skull 
of  that  French  commander,  its  base  covered  with  a blue  velvet  and  gold- 
laced  military  coat  collar.  Wolfe’s  remains  were  taken  to  England,  and  his 
grateful  government  erected  a monument  to  his  memory  in  Westminster 
Abbey.  Almost  seventy  years  afterward  an  English  governor  of  Canada 
caused  a noble  granite  obelisk  to  be  reared  in  the  city  of  Quebec,  and 
dedicated  “ To  the  Memory  of  Wolfe  and  Montcalm.” 

General  Townshend  succeeded  Wolfe  in  command  of  the  army.  With 
unparalleled  selfishness  and  meanness,  he  tried  to  arrogate  to  himself  the 
glory  of  the  victory.  He  did  not  even  mention  Wolfe’s  name  in  his  narra- 
tive of  the  battle.  But  others  did,  and  public  justice  was  quick  to  award 
honor  where  honor  was  due,  and  Townshend  disappeared  in  a peerage. 
Five  days  after  the  battle,  Quebec  was  surrendered  to  the  English.  The 
news  reached  England  a month  afterward — three  days  after  Wolfe’s  de- 
sponding letter  to  Holderness,  as  we  have  observed.  The  joy  of  the  people 
was  intense ; then  grief  because  of  the  death  of  the  hero  was  deep  and 
heartfelt.  “ They  despaired — they  triumphed — they  wept,”  wrote  Horace 
Walpole,  “ for  Wolfe  had  fallen  in  the  hour  of  victory  ! Joy,  grief,  curiosity, 
astonishment  were  painted  on  every  countenance ; the  more  they  inquired 
the  higher  their  admiration  rose.”  Exultation  stirred  every  heart  in  the 
colonies.  Illuminations,  bonfires,  cannon-peals  and  oratory  everywhere 
•expressed  the  general  joy,  and  thanksgivings  were  uttered  by  every  lip. 

It  was  the  i8th  of  September,  1759,  when  the  city  of  Quebec,  its  fortifi- 
cations, shipping,  stores  and  people,  passed  into  the  control  of  the  English, 
and  General  Murray  with  five  thousand  troops  occupied  it.  The  English 
fleet,  with  prisoners,  sailed  for  Halifax.  The  campaign  was  ended,  but 
Canada  was  not  conquered. 

De  Levi  succeeded  Montcalm  in  command  of  the  French  forces.  Early 
in  the  spring  of  1760,  Vaudreuil,  governor  of  Canada,  sent  him  to  recover 
Quebec.  Murray,  boastful  and  rash,  marched  out  to  meet  him ; and  at 
Sillery,  three  miles  above  the  city,  they  met  and  fought  one  of  the  most 
sanguinary  battles  of  the  war.  De  Levi  led  nearly  ten  thousand  men ; 
Murray  was  at  the  head  of  over  six  thousand  men.  The  English  were 
defeated  with  the  loss  of  a fine  train  of  artillery  and  a thousand  soldiers, 
and  fled  back  to  the  walled  town.  The  French  besieged  the  city,  and  the 
condition  of  the  English  was  perilous,  when,  early  in  May,  a British 
squadron  with  provisions  and  reinforcements,  sent  by  the  sagacious  and 
provident  Pitt,  ascended  the  St.  Lawrence.  Two  of  the  ships  that  arrived 


Chap.  XXIII. 


CONQUEST  OF  CANADA  COMPLETED. 


589 


first  at  Quebec  destroyed  the  French  shipping  there.  De  Levi  supposed 
them  to  be  the  vanguard  of  a large  armament,  and  at  the  middle  of  May 
he  raised  the  siege,  abandoned  most  of  his  artillery  and  stores,  and  fled  with 
the  greatest  celerity  toward  Montreal.  Murray  pursued,  but  could  not  over- 
take the  fugitives.  Montreal  was  now  the  last  remaining  stronghold  of  the 
French  on  the  continent;  Amherst  might  have  had  possession  of  it  before 
De  Levi  besieged  Quebec,  but  he  spent  the  whole  spring  and  summer  in 
preparations  for  a regular  invasion  of  Canada.  Meanwhile  Vaudreuil  had 
collected  all  of  his  available  forces  at  Montreal  for  the  final  struggle. 

Amherst,  though  slow,  was  sure.  He  moved  three  armies  against  Mon- 
treal with  so  much  precision  that  they  arrived  there  almost  simultaneously. 
With  about  ten  thousand  men  he  marched  to  Oswego,  where  he  was  joined 
by  a thousand  warriors  of  the  Six  Nations,  under  Sir  William  Johnson.  He 
went  over  Lake  Ontario  and  down  the  St.  Lawrence,  and  appeared  before 
Montreal  on  the  6th  of  September,  having  taken  Fort  Presentation  at  Oswe- 
gatchie  (now  Ogdensburg)  on  the  way.  On  the  same  day  General  Murray 
arrived  there  from  Quebec  with  four  thousand  troops,  and  on  the  following 
day  Colonel  Haviland  appeared  on  the  St.  Lawrence,  opposite  Montreal, 
with  three  thousand  soldiers.  He  had  marched  from  Crown  Point,  and  had 
driven  the  French  from  Isle  aux  Noix.  Within  the  space  of  thirty  hours, 
over  seventeen  thousand  English  troops  had  gathered  around  the  doomed 
city.  Vaudreuil  saw  that  resistance  would  be  foolish  and  vain,  and  he  sur- 
rendered. On  the  8th  day  of  September,  1760,  all  Canada  passed  under  the 
dominion  of  Great  Britain,  with  no  stipulations  for  civil  liberty.  The 
pleasure  of  the  king  was  the  law  of  the  land.  That  king — George  the 
Second — died  suddenly  a few  days  after  the  glorious  news  of  the  conquest 
of  Canada  reached  London,  when  he  was  seventy-seven  years  of  age,  and 
was  growing  blind  and  deaf.  He  left  England  the  foremost  nation  of  the 
world  in  military  fame  and  moral  grandeur. 

General  Gage  was  made  military  governor  of  Montreal,  and  General 
Murray  was  sent  to  garrison  Quebec  with  four  thousand  men.  Joy  spread 
over  the  English-American  colonies,  for  peace  in  the  future  seemed  to  be 
secured.  The  people  everywhere  assembled  to  utter  public  thanksgiving  to 
Almighty  God  for  the  great  deliverance.  But  there  was  something  yet  to 
be  done  to  make  the  conquest  complete.  The  flag  of  France  yet  waved 
over  the  fort  at  Detroit,  and  other  places  in  the  West.  Amherst  could  not 
allow  the  French  lilies,  emblazoned  on  that  flag,  to  be  seen  anywhere  in  the 
conquered  domain.  A few  days  after  the  surrender  of  Montreal,  he  sent 
Major  Rogers,  with  two  hundred  Rangers,  to  plant  the  British  standard  at 
Detroit  and  elsewhere.  They  went  by  the  way  of  Frontenac,  and  along  the 


590 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  111. 


northern  shores  of  Lake  Ontario  around  to  Niagara.  At  the  latter  place 
they  furnished  themselves  with  a costume  suitable  for  the  wilderness,  and 
voyaged  over  Lake  Erie  in  the  chilly  days  of  October  and  November.  At 
the  mouth  of  a river  on  its  southern  shore,  they  met  a deputation  of  Ottawa 
chiefs,  who  told  them  to  remain  there  until  Pontiac,  their  emperor,  should 
arrive,  for  he  desired  to  see  them  with  his  own  eyes. 

Pontiac  soon  came.  He  was  a fine  specimen  of  a North  American 
Indian,  and  was  ruler  over  a magnificent  domain  in  Ohio  and  Michigan. 
His  people  (the  Ottawas)  revered  him,  and  the  tribes  over  whom  he  reigned 
admired  him  for  his  wisdom  and  bravery.  He  met  Rogers  with  a princely 
air,  and  demanded  why  he  had  entered  his  dominions  without  his  leave. 
Rogers  explained  that  the  English  had  conquered  Canada,  and  that  he  came 
only  to  drive  out  the  French,  their  common  enemy,  and  then  gave  the 
emperor  a belt  of  peace.  Pontiac  returned  it,  saying : “ I stand  in  the  path 
until  morning.”  Turning  on  his  heel,  he  left  Rogers  in  doubt  concerning 
the  chief’s  intentions.  His  men  kept  watch  for  treachery  all  night.  In  the 
morning,  Pontiac  sent  them  some  food.  Pie  soon  followed,  and  gave 
Rogers  assurances  of  his  friendship.  He  had  been  the  ally  of  the  French, 
but  was  too  shrewd  to  adhere  to  a waning  cause.  He  was  willing  to  court 
the  favor  of  the  English ; so  he  and  Rogers  sat  upon  a log  and  smoked  the 
calumet.  He  sent  word  to  the  tribes  south  and  west  of  Lake  Erie  that  the 
strangers  had  his  permission  to  cross  his  dominions.  Rogers  marched  on, 
and  on  the  29th  of  December,  1760,  he  unfurled  the  British  flag  at  Detroit. 
The  garrison  were  made  prisoners,  but  the  French  settlers  were  allowed  to 
remain  on  the  condition  of  taking  the  oath  of  allegiance  to  the  British 
crown. 

When  Canada  was  falling  prostrate  at  the  feet  of  British  power,  the  storm 
of  war  lowered  darkly  along  the  Carolina  frontiers.  There  had  been  strife 
with  the  Indians  there  for  years.  The  Cherokees,  the  treaty  friends  of  the 
English,  strove  hard  to  maintain  peace.  They  were  the  hardiest  and  most 
enlightened  of  the  savages  in  that  region.  These  mountaineers,  occupying 
the  hill  country  of  Georgia,  exerted  a powerful  influence  over  the  surround- 
ing tribes.  But  their  patience  was  exhausted  by  wrongs  which  they  and 
their  friends  had  suffered  at  the  hands  of  frontier  Virginia  Rangers,  and  the 
treachery  of  the  royal  governor  of  South  Carolina,  and  in  the  spring  of  1760, 
they  flew  to  arms  with  the  tribes  of  Tennessee,  Alabama  and  Georgia  as 
allies.  In  the  space  of  a few  weeks  the  western  frontiers  of  the  Carolinas 
were  swept  with  the  fiery  besom  of  desolation.  French  emissaries  had 
worked  powerfully  upon  the  Indian  mind,  and  military  stores  had  been  sent 
to  the  Cherokees  from  Louisiana.  The  smitten  and  menaced  people  called 


CONFLICT  WITH  THE  INDIANS  ON  THE  SOUTHWESTERN  FRONTIERS. 


Chap.  XXIII. 


WAR  AGAINST  THE  CHEROKEES. 


59' 


loudly  for  help.  Amherst  heeded  their  supplications,  and  early  in  April,  he 
detached  Colonel  Montgomery  (afterward  Lord  Eglintoun)  from  the  army  of 
Stanwix,  with  six  hundred  Highlanders  and  as  many  Royal  Americans,  to 
strike  the  Cherokees.  He  was  accompanied  by  Colonel  Grant,  who  had 
been  assailed  by  the  garrison  of  Fort  Du  Quesne  a few  months  before.  In 
the  western  part  of  South  Carolina,  beyond  the  Saluda,  they  were  joined  by 
seven  hundred  Carolina  Rangers,  among  whom  was  Moultrie,  who  afterward 
figured  in  the  American  war  for  independence. 

On  the  first  of  June  the  English  were  ready  to  apply  the  scourge.  They 
penetrated  the  beautiful  Valley  of  the  Keowee,  on  the  western  borders  of 
Anderson  District,  in  which  well-built  houses  and  cultivated  fields  gave 
tokens  of  a semi-civilization.  That  valley  they  plundered,  and  desolated  it 
with  fire,  driving  the  families  to  the  wooded  hills,  where  they  looked  down 
upon  their  possessions  utterly  ruined.  Onward  the  English  marched  over 
the  hills  and  the  headwaters  of  the  Savannah  to  the  Valley  of  the  Little 
Tennessee.  Down  that  valley  they  marched,  compelled  to  fight  almost 
every  inch  of  their  way  in  the  heart  of  the  Southern  Alleghany  Mountains. 
The  whole  country  was  aroused.  The  patriotism  of  the  Cherokees  gave 
intensity  to  their  anger.  The  English  were  in  serious  peril,  and  Mont- 
gomery wisely  retraced  his  steps.  This  movement  left  the  English  garrison 
at  Fort  Loudon,  on  the  Tennessee,  at  the  mercy  of  the  savages,  who  mur- 
dered a part  of  them  after  they  had  surrendered,  and  scattered  the  re- 
mainder, as  prisoners  of  war,  among  the  tribes.  Montgomery  hastened  to 
Charleston,  and  regardless  of  the  prayers  of  the  people,  who  feared  the  ire 
of  the  exasperated  Cherokees,  he  embarked  for  Halifax. 

The  Cherokees  were  not  subdued,  but  were  more  fiercely  inflamed  against 
the  English.  They  prepared  for  the  war-path  the  next  year,  when  Colonel 
Grant  appeared  with  a stronger  force,  and  compelled  them  to  stand  on  the 
defensive.  He  burned  their  villages,  desolated  their  fields,  and  killed  many 
of  their  warriors.  Finally,  the  nation,  dispirited,  humbly  sued  for  peace  in 
June,  1761,  and  a treaty  to  that  effect  was  made. 

Although  the  war  had  ceased  in  America,  the  French  and  English  con- 
tinued it  upon  the  ocean  and  among  the  West  India  islands,  with  almost 
unbroken  success  by  the  latter.  It  was  ended  by  a treaty  of  peace  nego- 
tiated in  1762,  and  signed  at  Paris  on  the  loth  of  February,  1763.  By  its 
terms  France  ceded  to  Great  Britain  all  her  claimed  territory  in  America 
eastward  of  the  Mississippi  River,  north  of  the  latitude  of  the  Iberville 
River,  a little  below  Baton  Rouge.  New  Orleans,  and  the  whole  of  Lou- 
isiana, was  ceded  by  France  to  Spain,  at  the  same  time  ; and  so  her  entire 
possessions  in  North  America,  for  which  she  had  labored  and  fought  for 


592 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  111. 


more  than  a century,  were  relinquished.  Spain,  with  whom  the  English  had 
been  at  war  for  a year  previously,  ceded  East  and  West  Florida  to  Great 
Britain,  at  the  same  time.  Now  the  English  held  undisputed  possession 
(excepting  by  the  Indians)  of  the  whole  continent  from  the  shores  of  the 
Gulf  of  Mexico  to  the  Frozen  Sea,  and  by  claimed  prescriptive  right,  from 
ocean  to  ocean.  The  domain  wrested  from  the  French  had  been  procured 
at  a cost  to  Great  Britain  and  her  American  colonies  of  five  hundred  and 
sixty  million  dollars. 

The  storm  in  the  south  had  scarcely  ceased  when  another,  more  porten- 
tous, was  seen  gathering  in  the  northwest.  All  over  the  land  from  the 
Shenandoah  Valley  to  Lake  Superior,  from  Western  New  York  and  the  line 
of  the  Alleghany  Mountains  stretching  into  the  Carolinas,  to  the  Mississippi 
River,  a deep-rooted  jealousy  of  the  English  appeared  among  the  Indians 
after  the  conquest  of  Canada.  They  regarded  the  English  as  a nation  of 
amazing  power,  who  were  ready  to  rob  them  of  their  lands  and  destroy  their 
race.  The  treatment  of  the  natives  by  the  English  was  so  cold  and  un- 
friendly when  compared  with  the  French,  that  the  savages  could  feel  no  real 
friendship  for  the  British,  and  it  was  only  fear  or  policy  that  caused  the 
Indians  to  make  treaties  with  them.  The  chiefs  were  treated  with  contempt 
by  the  British  officers,  and  so  their  pride  was  wounded ; they  treated  the 
people  as  children  or  slaves,  and  so  lost  their  respect.  Traders  cheated 
them  and  aroused  their  anger.  In  every  way  they  were  made  to  feel,  by 
contrast  with  the  conduct  of  the  French,  the  meanness  and  wickedness  of 
the  English.  The  jealousy  of  the  savages  was  crystallized  into  implacable 
hatred,  and  in  1761,  they  began  to  form  confederacies  and  plotted  con- 
spiracies for  the  destruction  of  their  English  masters. 

When,  after  the  treaty  of  Paris  in  1763,  the  tribes  were  informed  that 
France  had  ceded  the  country  to  Great  Britain,  without  asking  their  leave, 
there  was  wide-spread  indignation  among  them.  The  arrogance  of  Amherst 
in  his  official  intercourse  with  them  fanned  the  flame,  and  a vast  confederacy 
was  formed  for  the  purpose  of  attacking  all  of  the  English  forts  on  the 
frontiers  on  the  same  day,  to  destroy  their  garrisons  and  to  desolate  their 
settlements,  westward  of  the  Alleghanies. 

At  the  head  of  this  conspiracy  was  the  great  Ottawa  chief,  Pontiac,  then 
about  fifty  years  of  age.  He  was  conspicuous  for  courage,  resolution,  energy, 
and  magnetic  attraction  and  vehement  ambition,  and  ruled  many  tribes  with 
almost  despotic  power.  He  had  fought  on  the  side  of  the  French  in  the 
war  just  ended,  and  was  their  friend  until  his  interview  with  Major  Rogers. 
He  trimmed  his  sails  so  as  to  catch  the  favoring  breeze  of  the  power  he  held 
to  be  the  most  potential,  but  his  pride  was  soon  deeply  wounded  by  the 


.'Ai 


Chap.  XXIII. 


AN  INDIAN  CONFEDERACY. 


593 


arrogance  and  neglect  of  the  English.  He  saw  his  race  divided,  weak,  and 
powerless  before  a great  nation.  He  saw  the  English  rapidly  spreading 
their  settlements  over  the  hunting-grounds  of  the  Indians,  and  driving  them 
steadily  toward  the  setting  sun.  In  his  horoscope  of  the  future,  he  saw  the 
last  of  his  race,  naked  and  famishing,  driven  into  the  Pacific  Ocean,  of  which 
he  had  vague  ideas.  Ambition  and  patriotism  urged  him  to  lead  a con- 
spiracy for  the  salvation  of  his  country  and  his  race.  He  did  so,  with  mar- 
vellous skill  and  energy. 

Late  in  1762,  Pontiac  sent  ambassadors  to  the  tribes  around  the  lakes, 
and  all  over  the  country  southward  far  toward  the  Gulf  of  Mexico.  Each 
bore  the  wampum  war-belt  and  a hatchet  painted  red  in  token  of  hostilities. 
Each  delivered  the  stirring  words  of  Pontiac,  calling  them  to  the  defence  of 
their  country  and  their  lives ; and  everywhere  his  words  were  approved. 
He  called  a general  council  at  a spot  near  Detroit,  designated  by  him,  and 
there  the  tribes  were  assembled  in  April,  1763 — the  Ottawas,  Miamis, 
Wyandotts,  Chippewas,  Pottawatomies,  Mississaugues,  Shawnoese,  Foxes, 
Winnebagoes  and  Senecas — the  latter  the  most  warlike  of  the  Six  Nations. 
Pontiac  was  there  with  his  squaws  and  children,  and  the  meadow  in  which 
the  council  was  held  presented  a gay  and  animated  scene.  The  idle  young 
warriors  gathered  in  groups  to  feast,  smoke,  gamble,  and  tell  stories ; many 
of  them  bedizened  with  beads,  feathers,  hawks’  bills,  and  other  tokens  of 
foppery.  “ Here,  too,”  says  Parkman,  “were  young  damsels  radiant  with 
bears’  oil,  ruddy  with  vermilion,  and  versed  in  all  the  arts  of  forest  coquetry  ; 
shrivelled  hags,  with  limbs  of  wire,  and  the  voices  of  screech-owls ; and 
troops  of  naked  children,  with  small,  black,  mischievous  eyes,  roaming 
along  the  outskirts  of  the  woods.” 

The  council  was  convened  on  the  27th  of  April.  All  were  seated  on  the 
grass  in  a wide  circle,  row  within  row,  a grave  and  silent  assembly.  When 
pipes  had  been  lighted  and  passed  from  hand  to  hand,  Pontiac  arose,  plumed 
and  painted,  in  full  war-costume,  and  with  loud  voice  and  impassioned 
manner,  addressed  the  multitude.  He  recounted  the  wrongs  of  the  red  race, 
and  spoke  of  the  danger  to  be  apprehended  from  the  sovereignty  of  the 
English.  He  held  out  a long  and  broad  belt  of  wampum,  which,  he  said, 
he  had  received  from  the  king  of  the  French,  and  that  the  fleets  and  armies 
of  that  monarch  would  soon  come  back  to  reconquer  Canada,  when  the 
Indians  would  once  more  fight  by  their  side.  He  appealed  to  the  super- 
stition of  his  hearers  by  reciting  an  Indian  legend,  and  in  various  ways  he 
excited  them  with  a burning  desire  for  immediate  action. 

Treachery  was  to  be  the  first  movement  of  Pontiac  and  his  followers  in 
the  execution  of  the  sanguinary  scheme.  He  was  to  begin  the  tragedy  at 


594 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  III. 


Detroit.  Under  the  pretext  of  holding  a friendly  council  with  Major  Glad- 
win, the  commander  of  the  fort,  he  entered  it  in  Maj',  with  about  three 
hundred  warriors,  each  carrying  a knife,  tomahawk  and  short  gun,  concealed 
under  his  blanket.  When  Pontiac  should  arise  and  show  the  green  side  of  a 
belt,  the  massacre  of  the  garrison  was  to  begin.  A friendly  Indian  had 
warned  Gladwin  of  the  danger  the  day  before,  and  it  w’as  averted  by  the 
appointment  of  another  conference.  The  gates  were  shut  upon  Pontiac 
after  he  and  his  warriors  had  retired,  and  he  began  a siege  of  the  fort  that 


PONTIAC  IN  COUNCIL. 


continued  more  than  a year.  By  similar  acts  of  treachery,  or  by  sudden 
and  unexpected  assaults,  every  post  west  of  Oswego,  excepting  Niagara, 
Fort  Pitt  and  Detroit,  fell  into  the  hands  of  the  dusky  confederates  within  a 
fortnight  afterward,  for  the  work  was  performed  at  different  points  almost 
simultaneously. 


Chap.  XXIII. 


PONTIAC’S  LAST  STRUGGLE. 


595 


At  Michillimackinack,  Indians  came  to  the  fort  at  the  close  of  May,  as  if 
to  trade.  Every  day  they  engaged  in  the  exciting  pastime  of  ball-playing 
on  the  plain  near  the  fort.  On  the  2d  of  June  their  squaws  came  with  them, 
entered  the  fort,  and  stayed  there.  The  commander  and  a lieutenant,  unsus- 
picious of  any  danger,  stood  just  outside  the  gate,  watching  the  game.  At 
length  the  ball  was  sent  near  the  gate,  and  two  or  three  Indians  pursuing  it, 
went  behind  the  officers,  seized  them,  and  carried  them  off  to  the  woods. 
The  other  Indians  rushed  into  the  fort,  seized  hatchets  which  the  squaws 
carried  under  their  blankets,  and  murdered  a part  of  the  garrison,  making 
prisoners  of  the  remainder. 

Captain  Dalyell,  aide-de-camp  to  General  Amherst  was  sent  in  a vessel 
with  reinforcements  and  supplies  for  the  garrison  at  Detroit.  They  ran  up 
the  river  in  the  night  at  the  close  of  July,  and  succeeded  in  getting  both  into 
the  fort.  Dalyell  at  once  proposed  to  make  a sally  from  the  fort  and  attack 
the  besiegers,  who  lay  about  a mile  up  the  river.  Gladwin  thought  it  would 
be  imprudent.  Dalyell  persisted,  and  with  two  hundred  and  forty  chosen 
men,  he  marched  in  the  darkness  at  three  o’clock  in  the  morning  of  the  31st 
of  July,  to  surprise  Pontiac.  The  chief  was  on  the  alert,  and  at  a small 
stream  at  the  northern  verge  of  the  city  of  Detroit,  the  English,  furiously 
assailed,  were  forced  to  make  a precipitate  retreat,  leaving  twenty  of  their 
comrades  killed  and  forty-tvv'o  wounded,  on  the  borders  of  the  brook,  which, 
to  this  day,  bears  the  name  of  Bloody  Run.  Dalyell  was  slain  while  trying 
to  carry  off  the  wounded,  and  his  scalp  was  an  Indian’s  trophy. 

This  victory  encouraged  the  Indians,  and  they  swarmed  around  Detroit 
and  Fort  Pitt.  For  the  relief  of  the  latter.  Colonel  Bouquet  was  sent  with 
a force  of  regulars  from  Pennsylvania.  Early  in  August  he  approached  the 
fort,  when  the  besieging  savages  attacked  him.  He  had  two  desperate 
fights  with  them,  in  which  he  lost  about  one-fourth  of  his  command  and  all 
of  his  horses,  but  he  drove  the  assailants  away  and  entered  the  fort  with 
the  remainder.  Detroit  was  relieved  the  next  summer  by  a force  under 
Colonel  Bradstreet. 

The  power  of  the  Indian  Confederacy  was  now  broken,  and  chiefs  of  the 
hostile' tribes  sued  for  pardon  and  peace.  The  haughty  Pontiac  would  not 
yield.  He  tried  to  rally  the  confederate  tribes,  but  in  vain.  He  went  to 
the  Illinois  country  where  no  Englishman  had  been,  and  where  the  French 
flag  yet  waved.  Among  the  tribes  there  he  exerted  his  eloquence  to  in- 
duce them  to  make  war  on  the  English.  He  sent  an  ambassador  to  New 
Orleans  to  ask  the  French  to  aid  him.  His  efforts  were  vain.  The  cause 
that  lay  next  to  his  heart  was  ruined.  Afterward  we  find  him  holding  a 
friendly  conference  with  Sir  William  Johnson  at  Oswego;  then  he  is  seen  at 


596 


OUR  COUNTRY. 


Book  III. 


St.  Louis  trying  to  arouse  the  French  people  there  to  drive  the  English  out 
of  the  Illinois  country,  which  they  had  seized.  At  last,  in  1769,  this  haughty 
Indian  prince — this  Catawba  prisoner  adopted  by  the  Ottawas — who  had 
swayed  almost  unbounded  power  over  thousands  of  square  miles  of  ter- 
ritory, was  slain  near  Cahokia.  A strolling  Indian  was  bribed  by  an  Eng- 
lish trader  to  murder  him.  That  savage,  for  the  gift  of  a barrel  of  rum, 
stole  softly  behind  Pontiac  in  the  forest  and  buried  his  hatchet  in  his  brain. 


DEATH  OF  PONTIAC. 


END  VOLUME  L 


1 


t 


I 


'I 


T- 


V/ 


,v 


% 


» 


V' 


',1 


■*.▼  ■ , ^ , - . 

' >v 

4 i 


r 


r 


> 


> 


y 


p i ' 


f* 


■ 

■f 


■ '*i  ,■ 


f 


BOSTON  COLLEGE 


903- 


569764  2 


F 178  .LB97  1877  v*l 

Lossin^y  Benson  John?  1813- 
1891* 

Our  country* 


Boston  College 
Libraries 

Chestnut  Hill,  Mass.  02167 


